


Life With Riley

by JenniR



Category: Actor RPF
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Bathtub Sex, Car Sex, Daddy Kink, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Hot Tub Sex, Shower Sex, Smut, Vaginal Fingering, Vaginal Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-23
Updated: 2017-06-22
Packaged: 2018-10-09 13:21:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 92
Words: 211,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10413108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JenniR/pseuds/JenniR
Summary: Riley is the live in help and best friend of actor Norman Reedus.  Sean Flanery waltzes into her life and falls in love with her.  Or does he?





	1. Chapter 1

Riley Maxwell had been Norman’s live-in help for almost a year. They had met when she was bartender at one of the two bars in Senoia, an Irish-type pub called Bailey’s. He’d started coming in and they got to be friends. He found out she’d picked up and moved to Georgia from Oregon for a “change of scenery”. She had planned to go to Atlanta to look for work, but her car had other ideas and broke down in Senoia. Riley knew that detouring down to New Orleans on her way had probably been a bad idea, but how many chances was she going to get?  
The car crapped out on a highway in Senoia, and got towed to the one garage in town. While she waited for them to fix it, she wandered into Bailey’s for a drink, and heard the owner talk about needing to hire a bartender. She told him she was looking for work, and he hired her on the spot….God bless good people in small towns.  
Norman was already somewhat of a regular there, so they got to know each other. As fate would have it, there was an accident. The bar had had some electrical work done by a shady contractor, and she drove into work one day to find the place in flames. Electrical fire caused by faulty wiring. Luckily nobody was hurt, but now Riley was out of a job.  
Through their talks, Norman had found out that she had at one time been the live in help for an older couple in Portland. They had lived in a big lovely house and hired her through an agency. She lived in the home and took care of the cooking and cleaning, as they were getting older and it wasn’t coming as easy to them. When the wife had died, the husband decided to sell the house and travel, and that’s when she had packed up and moved.  
So when Riley’s job burned to the ground, Norman approached her with the same arrangement she’d had in Portland. Surprisingly, it had worked out. He had a four bedroom house, so he had plenty of room. He loved coming home to someone instead of an empty house, save for the cat, eating a real meal, as opposed to take out or something he made on his George Foreman Grill, and his house was the cleanest it had ever been. Although his friends had warned him about sexual tension, there was none. They did, however, become great friends, and they watched out for each other. There was zero attraction between them, but they were as close as could be. Norman had told her, “I may be your boss, but I’m your friend first and foremost.” They spent a lot of nights sitting on the couch watching movies and talking.

“Riley, could you help me with this damn thing?” Norman called as he walked down the hallway fussing with his tie. Just then the doorbell rang, and Riley called, “Just a sec, I bet that’s Sean.” Surely enough, there stood Sean in a suit as well. “Well, hello pretty girl,” he said when she opened the door. “You just get better looking every time I see you.” She just rolled her eyes at him, “Hi Sean, come on in.”  
Norman walked in with his tie all crooked. “Riley,” he whined. “Help.”  
“What would you do without me?” she asked as she walked to him and redid his tie.  
“I would go to functions with a fucked up tie.”  
Riley made him more presentable, telling him, “There you go. Now you look good. If you were my type, I’d totally jump you.”  
Sean’s face lit up and he said, “Would you jump me if I was your type?”  
She smirked at him and said, “No, Sean, I’d kill myself.”

The boys fussed for a few minutes before leaving. They were taking part in a charity auction where a date with them went to the highest bidder. Norman wasn’t too comfortable with it, but it was a children’s charity, and he had a soft spot for kids. Hell, he was a big kid himself. As they walked out the door, Norman assured her they wouldn’t be in too late, but she shouldn’t wait up. “No worries, boss man. Me and Eye got a hot date with Netflix. Have fun, whores!”  
“We’re not whores!” Norman pouted.  
“You’re selling yourself, love,” she smiled back.  
Norman thought it over and just said, “Shut up,” as he walked out to the car. 

As they drove away, Sean told Norman, “I think I’m wearing her down.” Norman laughed at him. Sean had been trying to get with her since he’d met her on a visit six months ago. He couldn’t understand how Norman only saw her as a sister. He loved her long dark hair, her dark eyes, her tiny, hot little body, and her smile. Norman told him, “I don’t think so. She thinks you’re a man-whore.”  
“But I’m not! I mean, yeah I’ve… ‘been’ with women, but it’s not like I’m nailing any pussy that comes around.”  
“Maybe not, but you never did anything to discourage the rumors, either.”  
Sean was quiet the rest of the way. He hoped they had booze there, he needed a drink.

Riley was fast asleep with Eye in the Dark curled up next to her when she heard a crash in the house. She sat up in bed, thinking, ‘Shit, did I set the alarm? I’m sure I did….’ She got up quietly, putting on her slippers, and grabbed her Louisville Slugger baseball bat. Quietly, she tiptoed to her door, opened it carefully and peeked out. She saw two people shuffling in the hallway, suddenly one of them turned on the light.  
It was a very drunk and clumsy Norman and a very sober and amused Sean.  
Riley came out of the bedroom. “Dammit, Sean! You got him drunk!” Norman looked up and smiled at her drunkenly. “Riley! My love! You look absolutely stunning tonight. Those bunny slippers are sexy!” He dissolved into giggles as Riley rolled her eyes.  
Sean defended himself. “I had nothing to do with this for once, I swear! Some hoochies were upset they got outbid by some old woman, and asked if they could buy him a drink. I think they bought him more than one. I was only gone for maybe an hour.”  
“Now I have to take care of Mr. Hangover on my day off. Thanks a lot.”  
Just then Norman piped up, “Guess what? Sean is moving in!”  
“I’m sorry, WHAT?”  
At this point they were all but carrying Norman into his bedroom. He flopped on the bed and promptly passed out. Sean took off his shoes, while Riley got his tie, then Sean ninja pulled Norman’s dead weight into a sitting position so she could pull off his jacket and shirt, then he flopped back on the bed. Sean asked, “Should we take off his pants?”  
“Check if he’s wearing underwear.”  
Sean undid Norman’s belt and unfastened his pants, then said, “Yup, he’s covered.”  
“Alright, hold on the waistband of his drawers…” She gave a couple of hard tugs, and his pants were off, and she was fishing out his wallet, phone and keys and putting them on the nightstand. Sean pulled the garbage can out of the bathroom and put it next to the bed in case Norman puked.  
A drunk voice came from the bed. “I love you guyssss sooooooooooo much….where are my pants? I need to wear pants to go home.”  
Riley sighed. “You ARE home, dumbass! Goodnight!”

Sean was sweeping up the pieces of the vase Norman had broken when Riley walked up. He looked up at her. Damn she looked cute. She was wearing pajama pants with little bears on them, bunny slippers, and a thin little tank top, with her hard nipples poking through. Oh lord.  
She was also wearing her angry face, which Sean was usually the recipient of, was tapping one foot angrily causing the bunny ears to bounce up and down, and was standing with her arms crossed, pushing those lovely boobs of hers up. “What’s this crap about you moving in?”  
He sighed, he knew she wouldn’t like it. He knew she didn’t like HIM. “It’s not permanent. I’m filming a movie in the area and Norm insisted I stay here instead of having to live in a hotel or try to find a place to rent. And this was before he started drinking.”  
Riley flopped on the couch and rubbed her forehead, watching him sweep up the last of the glass and toss it in the trash. Sean crouched down in front of her, and began, “Look, I know you don’t like me…  
“I never said that.”  
That quieted him for a second. And she said again, “I have never once said I don’t like you. I don’t like your cocky attitude, but when you act like a real person, when you’re just Sean, I like you just fine. It’s when you are ‘Sean Patrick Flanery, Actor’....that’s who I don’t like. I have no say in whether you live here or not. You are the best friend of my boss. If you think you can act a little more like Sean, we’ll be fine. Like tonight, when you asked about being my type. That was Sean talking. You always flirt with me. That’s why I teased you right back. It’s what we do.” Sean just looked at her. She had totally called him on his shit. She wasn’t trying to impress him, she wasn’t being a fangirl, she was telling it like it really is.  
“As for tonight,” Riley said, standing up, “you are not going back to Atlanta or wherever the fuck you're staying. Go to the other guest room and get some sleep. There’s still some clothes of yours in there from last time you were here.” The way she spoke, there was no discussion to be had, and she started walking back to her room, throwing over her shoulder, “Goodnight, Sean.”


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning Sean woke up to the smell of bacon and eggs cooking. ‘Hangover breakfast,’ he thought. He started to head to the kitchen when he heard voices in Norman’s room. Norm and Riley talking.  
“Ugh, my fucking head hurts, Ri.”  
“It’s your own damn fault. Eat some of this, have some coffee and ibuprofen, puke a few times, you’ll be fine. So who won the date with you? A hottie?”  
“Nah. Some blue haired old lady outbid everyone. I have the feeling I’m gonna end up getting my ass pinched by her.”  
He heard Riley laugh at that then ask, “Who got Sean?”  
“A married mother of two. She wants a private Jiu-Jitsu class with him for her family. They’ve all trained for a while.”  
“So neither of you got anything you’d…. ‘like’?”  
“Not really. By the way, I asked Sean to move in while he’s filming. Are you ok with that?”  
Sean waited for Riley to answer. Finally, she just said, “It’s not up to me.”  
“That’s not what I asked. I know you two don’t always see eye to eye.”  
“Norman, you’re my boss - “  
“I’m also your friend.”  
“He and I chatted last night. It will be fine.”

Sean ducked back in his room as he heard Riley pick up the plate from Norman. She walked into the kitchen and Sean walked in a few minutes later, yawning and stretching like he’d just woken up. Riley smiled at him. “Well good morning sleepy head. Want some bacon and eggs?”  
“I don’t want to trouble you. Didn’t you say it was your day off?”  
Riley gave a brief frown. “On hangover day, it’s imperative that I at least make breakfast. Usually, you get left to your own devices.”

Sean accepted the food and coffee she offered. Riley was leaning against the counter nursing a cup of coffee, and Sean kept sneaking glances at her. After a few minutes, she said, “Sean, why are you staring at me? It’s creeping me out.”  
“Sorry, pretty girl. Didn’t mean to bug.”

She starting loading the dishwasher, and Sean came over to help. They were just finishing when they heard the unmistakeable sound of Norman throwing up. When he was done, Riley called out, “Norm?”  
“I’m okay.”  
“Did you make it to the toilet for that little performance, or do I need to do a cleanup?”  
“I miraculously made it to the bathroom. Ugh, I’m gonna try to sleep some more.”  
Riley and Sean looked at each other and started giggling.

Later that afternoon, Norman emerged, looking a little better, or at least a little more human. They sat up and watched The Walking Dead, as it was Sunday night, and went over the grocery list for Monday during the commercials. Sean let them know that filming didn’t start for him for another 1 ½ weeks.   
“Are you guys sure you don’t want me to stay in a hotel in Atlanta?” he asked. “At least until filming starts?”  
Riley asked, “Where in Atlanta are you filming?”  
“We aren’t. We’re shooting in Peachtree.”  
“Absolutely not,” Norman told him. “I consider you my brother, and you are staying in my house.” Riley added, “Especially if you’ll be filming in Peachtree. It’s only a 15 minute drive from here. Coming from Atlanta with traffic, you’re looking at at least 45 minutes each way. Atlanta traffic is it’s own special circle of Hell.”

The next morning Norman left for an early morning shoot before anyone was up. Both Riley and Sean woke around 9 a.m. After some coffee and a shower, Riley left for the store...or at least she tried to. She came back in, irritated. “Sean, can you come out and give Herbie a jump? The battery is dead. Gonna have to go to the garage today.”  
“Yeah, sure thing. You got jumper cables? I do if you don’t.”  
Not only did she have cables, she knew how to hook them up. It always blew Sean’s mind how many people had them and didn’t know how to hook them up. Ridiculous. But then again, Riley was an unusual kind of girl. Norman had told him about her, and Sean would never say it, but he’d had her checked out. Everything she’d told him was true, which was a relief. She was hiding nothing: no alias, no arrests, not even a parking ticket.  
He watched her drive away. She sure was cute. Even her damn car, a VW Beetle she lovingly referred to as “Herbie”, was cute. Walking back into the house, he shook his head. It was going to be a long 9 weeks.

Riley drove straight to the garage. As soon as she got there, she saw Kevin. He was a saint of a mechanic. While every mechanic she’d ever met tried to get her to junk Herbie, he did whatever he could to help keep him running. Considering the car was older than the owner, a truly antique VW with a sturdy metal body, that was no easy feat. But it was worth it when she smiled at him. He loved her smile. Plus, she was super hot.

Kevin walked over to Riley, wiping his hands on a rag. “Hey Riley. Herbie not feeling so good?”  
“No. Came out to a dead battery this morning. Guess it’s time to replace it. It’s been awhile.”  
“When did you last get it changed?” Kevin asked as he came over with a meter to test it.  
“Hmmm,” she thought back then said, “about 5 years.”  
Kevin measured it with the meter, and it showed it didn’t have hardly any juice left. He showed it to her. “It’s definitely time. I can do it right now for ya. Shouldn’t take more than maybe 20 minutes.”  
Riley thought about it, and realized she had no choice. Sometimes Norm needed her to bring something to the set for him, and she didn’t want to risk the car breaking down on that stretch of deserted highway. “How much will it cost?”  
He smiled at her. “Well, the battery is about $110. The labor will be another $50...but I think we can give you a discount. You and Herbie are good customers. How does $120 sound?”  
Riley was ecstatic. Norman paid her well, and she got free room and board to boot, but she grew up poor and saving her pennies, and this was no different. “That would be fabulous!”

Of course Herbie refused to start, so they pushed him into the garage so Kevin could get a new battery in him. He was done in only 15 minutes, and she was in the office with him while he ran her credit card. Riley realized that under all that grease and mechanic's overalls, he was pretty cute. Tall, with wavy brown hair, dark eyes, and a nice smile with dimples. Kevin gave her the credit card slip to sign as he filled out the receipt for the car battery, and handed it over to her. He walked her over to Herbie, reminding her that the battery was guaranteed for a year. Opening the door for her, he stopped her. “Hey, um….could I maybe have your phone number? Maybe we could go out sometime?” Riley gave him a big smile and told him, “Well of course!” She told him her number and he put it is his phone. She drove off to get groceries with a big smile on her face. He smiled too. She would do just fine. Nice tits, anyway.

Norman and Sean both noticed the happy smiles she kept getting on her face. Norm had a good idea about who put it there, he had seen Kevin and knew he was a good looking guy. The next night at dinner, he broached the subject.  
“You sure are smiling a lot, Ri.”  
“Am I?” she asked, smiling even bigger. “I hadn’t noticed. By the way, you still have your hat on.”  
Norman took it off and threw it in the living room, while Sean said, “Yeah, you are pretty damn smiley. You up to something?”  
“What would I be up to?”  
Then Norman asked, with a smile of his own, “Does Kevin have anything to do with it?”  
Riley didn’t answer, just smiled and started clearing the table. Sean looked confused. “Who’s Kevin?”

The next day Kevin called and asked if she’d like to go out for a few drinks on Saturday. Bailey’s had been rebuilt since the fire, and as it was a quieter place than the other bar in town, they could get to know each other a bit. Riley was over the moon. She hadn’t been on a date in a good long time. They agreed to meet there. She didn’t tell people who she worked for, usually stretching the truth and saying she worked as a nanny or housekeeper if people asked. They were a lot of moneyed families in the area. She didn’t want people to know she worked for Norman, she knew that some people would try to use her to get close to him. Some college girls tried to do that when she worked at Bailey’s, and then called her a “backwoods cunt” when she wouldn’t give up any info on him. Yeah, the girl from San Francisco was a backwoods cunt, whatever.

Riley let Norman know. He wasn’t her dad, but she liked to keep him in the loop of her basic whereabouts, hell he did the same for her. “Kevin asked you out?” She smiled and nodded. “Well that’s great! Where you going to go?”  
“Just to Bailey’s for a couple of drinks. A low key ‘get to know you’ kind of thing. We’re going to meet up there.”  
“Aw Ri, that’s great. It’s been nice to see such a big smile on your face.” She hadn’t dated at all, to his knowledge. Nobody had ever asked her out. She was close to his age, but still very pretty. He guessed it was just that in a small town like Senoia, most of the people were married by their 20’s, so it was pretty slim pickings for her. He had always wondered why she didn’t go into Atlanta for fun, but she seemed very happy to just stay in Senoia. Norman knew she was happy, but he’d still hoped she’d find someone. After all, when he went to a con, he’d sometimes fool around. Riley was his friend, he wanted her to be happy. Maybe this Kevin guy was the ticket. He was single and close to her age, and a transplant as well, from Idaho, if he remembered right.   
Friday rolled around. They were set to meet at the bar at 7:30, and before she “clocked out” from Norman, she had put a huge platter of enchiladas in the oven. Sean had been gone all day in a production meeting. He walked in the door at about 6 and exclaimed, “Dear lord, what smells so good?” Living here had it’s benefits, Riley was a phenomenal cook. Norman walked in from his home office. “Riley made us her world famous enchiladas. These are so damn good, you won’t even believe it. I eat so well with her around. It’s a good thing I work so hard on the show, I’d be huge.” Riley walked in wearing her robe with her damp hair hanging down and grabbed some oven mitts. “You know that’s not true, Normie. I’ve very good at low cal.” She pulled out the platter and put it on top of the counter on a hot pad. “Looks like they’re done,” turning to Norman she asked, “are you sure this is ok? I can cancel if you want.”  
“Absolutely not! You work too hard for me as it is.”  
Sean was confused. “What’s going on?”  
Riley smiled at him as she left the kitchen and said over her shoulder, “I have a date.”  
“What?” Sean asked following her back down the hall. “With who?”  
“Kevin, the guy who fixes my car,” she picked up her blow dryer and was about to turn it on when Sean started laughing. “You’re going out with a grease monkey?”  
Riley just looked at him and said, “There’s nothing wrong with being a mechanic. It’s a decent living, you can pretty much get a job in any town with a garage, and it will always be in demand. Some people actually WORK for a living Sean!” She slammed the bathroom door in his face and turned on her blow dryer.

When Sean turned around Norman was standing there. “Why did you make fun of him? He seems like a decent guy, and she’s right about everything she said.”  
“I know,” Sean said as he grabbed a beer out of the fridge, feeling miserable.  
“Then why are you antagonizing her?” Norman asked, reaching for a beer himself. “This is the first date she’s had since I’ve known her. Don’t make her feel bad because she’s not dating you.”  
Sean shot Norman a look. “That’s not it. I just think...she can do better….”  
“By dating you.” Norman finished. “Why don’t you just fucking ask her out already?”  
“Because she’ll say no. She hates me.”   
Norman grabbed some plates and served them both some enchiladas, and sat down at the table with Sean. “She doesn’t hate you, Sean. She never has. She hates when you’re an asshole. Riley isn’t some fangirl you gotta impress. She’s just Riley. You never know, dude. She might surprise you. Holy fuck, this is delicious.” Hearing the bathroom door open, Norman called out, “Riley, this is fabulous! Thank you!”  
He heard her call back, “You’re welcome,” then close her bedroom door to put on her makeup.

Riley sat at the little table she used as a makeshift vanity. Stupid really, she rarely wore makeup, but here she was making up her face anyway. She couldn’t believe what Sean had said. It wasn’t like she got asked out ever anymore. Here was a decent, eligible, HANDSOME guy who wanted to spend time with her. He didn’t even know Kevin. Sean could be such an asshole.

She finished doing her makeup, and fixed her hair. Just a low side ponytail, that made her wavy hair look perfect. She put a touch of perfume on her wrists and neck, put on her summer dress and flats, and put everything she needed into her little shoulder bag: keys, money, driver’s license, phone, and lipstick. she walked out of the bedroom, down the hall, and to the kitchen to say goodbye.

Sean dropped his fork when he saw her. Norman turned around and told her, “Wow, Riley, you look great! Very pretty!”  
“Aw, thanks, boss.”  
Sean stood up trying to think of something to say. She really did look great. The little dress looked perfect on her: not too revealing, but not prudish either, and he’d never seen her with her hair and makeup done. All he could manage to say was, “Yeah,” in agreement with Norman’s statement , while he mentally kicked himself.   
“Ok boys, I’m off. Please put your plates in the dishwasher for me?”  
“No problem, “ Norman assured her. “Go out and have some fun. If anything happens, if you drink a little too much or whatever, just give me a call, and I’ll come get you. Ok?”  
“Yes, sir.” She walked out the door, and suddenly Sean jumped up and went after her. He caught her before she got into her car.  
“Hey, um….you really do look nice tonight,” he managed to spit out.  
“Thanks,” she smiled as she got into her car. The window was open and Sean leaned in, “Drive careful, and have a good time.”  
“I will.”  
“I’m sorry I called him a grease monkey.”  
“It’s ok, but Sean?”  
“Yeah?”  
“I can’t leave if you are hanging in my driver’s side window.”  
Sean laughed. “I guess you can’t,” he pulled himself out of the window.   
She pulled away, waving and went off down the road, and Sean went in the house, miserable.

A little over two hours later, Sean and Norman were watching TV, Norman’s cell phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket and looked at the display, “It’s Riley.” Sean sat up when he said that. His blood ran cold when he heard Norman’s side of the conversation.  
“Riley?.... Sweetie, are you there?.... Are you crying?... Sweetheart what’s wrong? …. Ok baby, ok, please stop crying… Just tell me where you are, I’ll come right now….Riley, please, I’m not mad, you aren’t in trouble….Did you say he hurt you?”  
Sean was already on his feet ready to go find her and tear apart whoever made her cry. Norman was clearly distressed, still on the phone with her as he grabbed his car keys. “Sweetheart….. shh, shh, it’s ok honey…..just tell me where you are.”  
Sean could hear her muffled voice talking to him, and then Norman said, “Ok sweetie, stay there we’ll be there in 5 minutes.” He then heard her loud and clear scream, “DON’T HANG UP!”  
Norman told her, “Ok, I’m giving the phone to Sean so I can drive, ok?” and he handed it to Sean as they ran to the car. He started up the jeep and they hauled ass.

Sean put his ear to the phone, “Riley?” Her only response was crying. He whispered to Norman, “Where is she?”  
“She’s in the field behind the old laundromat.”  
Sean trusted he knew where he was going. Riley suddenly said, “Please hurry! I’m scared!”  
“It’s ok sweetie,” Sean tried to soothe her. “We’re on our way. Just hang on baby.”  
Again she just cried. Sean was going to kill whoever put her in this state. What the fuck was she doing in a field at ten o’clock at night?  
Suddenly, Norman pulled off to a strip mall that looked abandoned. They climbed out and ran around to the back, calling through the acre of waist high grass for her. Sean had his ear to the phone. He could hear her weakly saying, “I’m here, please…”  
“Baby, listen to me. Can you hold up your phone and flash the display for us?”  
“I think so. Ok…”  
Norman and Sean looked, and Norman finally saw a dim light flashing in the distance. “Over there!” Norman pointed and they took off running. All Norman could think was that he really needed to quit smoking.

They finally found her, curled up in the dirt in her dress, barefoot and shivering. Sean gently put a hand on her shoulder, but she jerked away, whimpering. “Hey, sweetie, it’s ok. It’s Sean and Norman, we’re here. It’s ok, you're safe.”

Riley tried to push herself up to a sitting position, but she couldn’t. Her left wrist was hurt. Her right hand was holding her cell phone and the front of her torn dress closed. She shifted her position and turned her head enough to look through the one eye that wasn’t swelling shut. Her vision was blurry, but she saw Sean’s unmistakable blonde head, and Norman’s dark and shaggy one.   
Norman just said, “Oh god.” Riley started to cry again, saying, “I’m sorry.”  
Sean told her, “Sweetie, you’ve done nothing wrong, ok?” Seeing her holding her torn dress shut, his blood started to boil.  
“I’m cold. I hurt.”  
Turning to Norman, Sean said, “Call an ambulance,” as he took off his own light sweatshirt and gently covered her with it. Norman called 911, and ran back to the jeep for a blanket. Riley shifted on the ground, and Sean saw trails of dried blood that had run down the insides of her legs.  
“Sweetie, who did this to you?”  
Turning her battered and bloody face to him, she said, “Kevin.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, I know this chapter is very short, but the next one will be better.

Norman came back to where Riley was huddled on the ground, and covered her with the blanket from the Jeep. “Sweetie, where’s your car?”  
“At Bailey’s.”

They could hear the sirens of the ambulance in the distance. Sean caught Norman’s eye, and motioned to the blood on Riley’s legs, then mouthed, ‘Kevin.’ Norman couldn’t believe it. He’d only met the guy in passing once at the bar when Riley worked there, but still, he’d seemed nice.

Norman headed out to the road to flag down the ambulance. Poor Riley. She was his friend and it was killing him to see her like that. He led the EMT’s to where she was in the dirt. They removed Norman’s blanket and tried to roll her onto her back, but she resisted. One of the EMT’s was a woman, and saw the predicament. Her dress was torn down the front. The poor girl had likely been raped. She covered her back up with the blanket, and Riley’s one good eye looked up at her gratefully.   
They put her on the stretcher as gently as they could. Riley just couldn’t stop crying and shaking. One of the EMT’s called for the police to meet them at the hospital. “Severe physical assault of an adult female, possible sexual assault, she is awake and responsive.” The EMT turned to Sean and Norman. “We’re taking her to Piedmont Newnan, it’s the closest.”  
Norman told him, “Ok, we’ll follow you.”  
As they turned to walk to the car, Riley started screaming and reaching for them, crying, “NO! DON’T LEAVE ME!” She was so terrified, it was heartbreaking. Sean walked along next to her stretcher and asked, “Do you want me to ride with?” She nodded, and Norman said to Sean, “Ok. You ride with, I’ll follow in the Jeep.”

Sean climbed in with the EMT’s, holding Riley’s hand the entire time. She was afraid to let anyone but the female one touch her. Sean tried to tell her that it was ok, they were there to help her, but it was to no avail. “It’s ok,” the woman told him. “It’s typical during trauma like this.” They tore down the highway with the siren going and Norman in hot pursuit, his mind racing. What the hell happened to her? She looked like she’d gone 10 rounds with a prize fighter. What kind of a person does that?

The EMT called ahead to request a female doctor to examine Riley. Sean’s head was spinning. He just kept hearing “possible sexual assault” and seeing the blood on her legs. She wasn’t a virgin, was she? Why was she bleeding like that? That couldn’t be normal. 

Arriving at the hospital, it was organized chaos. They had a mostly female staff brought together to care for her. They put her on a bed in the emergency room and drew the curtain. Both Norman and Sean started to go to her, but a nurse stopped them. “They need to examine her. They can’t do that with you there. I know you know what I mean.” They heard a nurse call for a rape kit, then heard Riley say something softly, and the nurse cancel the kit. What was that about? They went to the front desk so Norman could fill out paperwork for her.

A police officer came in and went to the ER desk. “I’m sheriff Rick Grimes, this is my deputy Tara Chambler. We were called about physical assault and possible sexual assault of a woman.” The nurse explained that she was still being examined, so they sat down to wait. Sean turned to the cops. “Hi, I’m Sean, I’m a friend of Riley. The girl you’re here to see. She told me who hurt her. It was a guy she went out with. His name is Kevin.” Sheriff Grimes took out a notepad. “Kevin who?”  
Norman interjected, “Kevin Wilkinson. He works at Senoia Motor Care. That’s where she knew him from. He’s worked on her car a few times. She was out on a date.”  
The sheriff wrote it all down. “Ok, I’ll have to corroborate this with her before I can call it in, I hope you understand.”  
“I don’t!” Sean exclaimed, jumping up from his seat. “This guy attacked her and you want to wait before you look for him? Why? So he can get to Mexico?”  
“Sean, he needs to make sure we aren’t the ones who did this,” Norman said softly. Sean fell down into his chair. He couldn’t believe anyone would think that either of them would ever hurt a woman.


	4. Chapter 4

They all waited for almost an hour, then a nurse finally came out for Norman and Sean with a sad smile on her face. “She’s ok. She’s asking for you both. It will be just a few more minutes Sheriff.” He nodded in understanding.

They met the female doctor outside the door of the room they had her in. Norman asked, “She’s ok?” The doctor sighed heavily. “Physically, she’ll be fine. She’ll heal. Emotionally, I have no idea. She’s been brutalized.”  
Sean asked, “Can we take her home?”  
The doctor shook her head. “She’s got a concussion. We need to keep her at least overnight for observation. I just want to prepare you for when you go in there. She’s got some stitches on her forehead, a broken nose and 2 black eyes, she can see a little bit through one of them. Her lip is swollen, but luckily he didn’t break or knock out any teeth or break her jaw. We have her on oxygen, mainly because he choked her and she said it was hard to breathe, and a heart monitor, just as a precaution. She’s got a badly sprained left wrist, they put a soft cast on it, and a couple of cracked ribs. Bruises, scratches, scrapes… a few bite marks -”  
“He bit her?” Norman asked, with tears in his eyes.  
“Yes,” the doctor continued. “He bit her, and burned her in a couple of spots with a car cigarette lighter. She’s also got a few internal vaginal stitches. We used dissolving ones so she won't need them removed. I didn’t want to further traumatize her.”  
“Why didn’t they use a rape kit?” Sean asked. “I heard them call for it, then cancel.”  
The doctor sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “He didn’t put his penis in her.”  
“But I saw blood,” Sean whispered.  
“Yeah,” the doctor said. “He used a screwdriver.”

 

Norman turned white when she said that. Sean turned to a nearby trashcan and threw up. The doctor grabbed a few tissues from a box on the nurses station nearby and handed them to Sean. “Look, I know this is a lot for you guys to stomach, but you need to be strong for her. Don’t go in there if you’re just going to fall apart. She told me she doesn’t have any living family, just you. You need to be her family. You need to let her know that this wasn’t her fault. That NOBODY deserves to be treated like this. Whether or not she decides to press charges is up to her. We took photos of her injuries for proof if she decides to. I hope she does. And I hope they fry the bastard,” the doctor said.  
Sean had tears running down his face. “The cops better find him before I do.”  
The doctor spoke again. “Go ahead and go in. I’ll give you a few minutes of privacy before I send the police officer in. After they talk, the nurse will give her a mild sedative so she can sleep. She’ll be safe here. Her room is right outside of the nurses station.”  
Sean simply said, “She isn’t staying here alone tonight. I won’t leave her.” The doctor just nodded her head, “I understand.”

Norman opened the door and they both entered quietly. Riley looked so small and helpless. Laying in that hospital bed with oxygen tube under her nose, an IV stuck in her good arm, a heart monitor beeping quietly, and a cast on her left wrist. She heard the door open, and called out, “Who is it? Who’s there?” in a scratchy, fearful voice. Norman cleared his throat and said, “It’s just me and Sean sweetie.” Sean came around to the other side of her bed and said softly, “Hey pretty girl.”  
Riley started crying and said, “Don’t call me that. I have a pretty good idea of how I look.”  
“You’ll always be my pretty girl, Riley.”  
She turned her one good eye towards Sean and gave him a small, painful, smile. “Flirt.” Then turning to Norman, she said, “Am I fired?”  
Norman looked confused. “Why would I fire you?”  
“Look at me, boss. I can’t work for at least a few days, if not a few weeks.”  
“Riley, I survived before you ever came to work for me. You’ll come back to the house. I’ll take care of you. I’m your friend first and foremost, remember? You’ve taken care of me, now I’ll take care of you.”  
“We both will,” Sean said.

Riley took a shaky breath, and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, wincing as she did. Sean noticed there were teeth marks on her ear. If he ever found that Kevin guy, he was going to kill him. Slowly.

There was a soft knock on the door, Riley scratched out, “Who’s there?” The door opened a bit and Sheriff Grimes popped his head in. “I’m Officer Rick Grimes and I’m here with my deputy Tara Chambler. May we come in? We’d like to get a statement from you Miss Maxwell.”  
“Please call me Riley. And yes, please come in.” Her poor voice was barely more than a whisper from being choked, and swallowing was a bit difficult.

Pulling a chair next to her bed, Rick said softly, “I’m sheriff of King County. I know you’ve had a bad night, but the sooner we get a statement, the better. Unfortunately, it’s good to get it while it’s still fresh in your mind. If you’d like, I can leave and you can give your statement to Tara.”  
“No, it’s ok.”  
“Would you like your gentleman friends to stay or leave?”  
Sean got angry. “I am NOT leaving her! Not for one damn minute!”  
Tara stepped in, “Sir, you need to calm down. This isn’t your choice. This woman has been traumatized, and right now, we want her to be as comfortable as possible to tell us what happened.”  
Sean lowered his head. The deputy was right. Maybe Riley didn’t want them to know. Maybe she was ashamed, although she had no reason to be. Sean had met girls who took Jiu-Jitsu after they had been attacked, and so many of them carried guilt. “You’re right, I’m sorry,” he said softly. Riley reached out and took his hand, saying, “I think I need them to stay.”  
Sheriff Grimes nodded. “Riley, who did this to you tonight.” She calmly replied, “Kevin Wilkinson.”  
“Was he alone, or was there somebody with him?”  
“He was alone.”  
“Do you know his home address?”  
“No, sir. His cell number is stored in my phone, though. And he works at Senoia Motor Care. That’s how I met him. He’s worked on my car.”  
“Ok, do you know what kind of vehicle he drives?”  
“It’s a blue pickup truck. Um….a Chevrolet, the tailgate was embossed with that, I remember. It was an older one, from the 80’s.”  
Tara had an iPad with her, tapped it a few times, and showed it to Riley. There was a page of blue pickup trucks, and she asked Riley, “Did it look like any of these?” Riley held the iPad close to her good eye, then pointed one out. “That one, exactly.”  
Sheriff Grimes got on his walkie talkie, and told one of the officers to contact the owner of Senoia Motor Care to see if he could track down more info on Kevin, including the license plate number of his car. In the meantime, he put out an APB on him with a description Riley gave them of him and his truck.

“Ok, Riley,” Rick said gently. I need you to tell me exactly what happened tonight. I need to know everything, from beginning to end. But before you say anything, I need you to answer one question. If we catch this guy, are you gonna press charges or are you gonna let him go?”  
Riley looked at Rick and said, “I want that fucker to fry.”  
Rick couldn’t help but smile.

Riley took a deep breath.  
“I had a date with him, we were meeting at Bailey’s at 7:30. It was supposed to be a low-key get to know each other kind of thing. Have a few drinks, maybe a bite to eat, maybe shoot a little pool, that sort of thing. I left the house at about 20 after 7.  
I waked in and he was already there. He got up and hugged me, and I noticed he smelled like booze, and I was glad I brought my own car. I ordered a beer, he tried to buy me a shot, but it’s rare that I drink hard liquor, and I wanted to kind of keep my wits about me. I knew I would eventually have to drive myself home.”  
Sheriff Grimes interrupted, “Where is your car now?”  
“In the parking lot of Bailey’s when I last saw it.”  
“What kind of car is it?”  
“A 1972 Volkswagen Beetle, off white.” She rattled off the license number and said, “There’s a fake daisy in the bud vase inside,” with a small smile.  
Tara got on her walkie and dispatched a few officers to Bailey’s to question the patrons and check on her car.  
“So anyway,” she continued, “we started chatting. But he was really power slamming. In the first hour, he had four shots of whiskey. I was getting irritated because he started to get...a little handsy. Not to mention a little obnoxious. I decided I wanted to leave, so I walked out to my car.  
He came after me, all apologies. He said he was sorry he was being stupid and drunk, that he was just nervous because he liked me so much. He begged me not to leave. He asked if I wanted to sit in his truck and listen to music for a few minutes. I guess I was stupid to trust him….” she trailed off and started to cry.  
“Hey now,” the sheriff told her. “You had no reason not to trust him at that point. You didn’t do anything wrong, okay? You need to know that. HE is the guilty one, not you.”  
Norman piped up, “Riley, this isn’t your fault.”  
Tara offered her a tissue from the box on the table next to the hospital bed, and Sean leaned down and whispered in her ear, “You are so strong.” She turned to him, and he nodded.  
“So we got in his truck. He started the engine, and I told him, ‘What are you doing? I’m not going anywhere with you, you’re drunk!’ And he said, ‘No, I’m just turning the motor on so I can turn on the radio and run the heat’, and it was a little chilly tonight, so I said okay. Can I have some water, please?”  
Sean poured some water from a pitcher on the bedside table into a cup and helped her sit up to take a sip. When she did, the back of her gown gaped open, and both he and Sheriff Grimes saw the bruises blossoming there and a few bite marks, and looked at each other. Sean wanted to cry, but he knew he had to stay strong for her. She sipped the water, then immediately started coughing. The heart monitor went crazy and a nurse rushed in. “She just wanted some water,” Sean told her. The nurse waited as Riley coughed up the small bit of water, then helped her lay back, telling her, “Maybe you shouldn’t drink any more tonight. Your throat is a bit swollen. The IV will keep you hydrated.”  
After the nurse left, Riley said, “Sorry everyone.” Tara said, “Don’t worry. You’re doing a very good job.”  
Another deep breath, and Riley started talking. “So we were in his car with the heat on and listening to music for maybe 5 minutes. We listened to one song. He reached over to me and put his hand in my hair. I thought he was going to try to kiss me….but he didn’t….. He grabbed me by the back of my head, and he slammed my head into the dashboard twice, hard. It hurt so bad!” she was crying all over again, and gingerly touched her fingers to the stitches above her eye.  
“The doctor said he gave me a concussion, but I don’t understand why he did it! What did I do?”  
Sean gently put his arms around her, telling her, “You didn’t do anything, honey. He’s a sick fuck is all,” then looking at Rick, he added, “You better hope you find him before I do.”  
A few minutes later, Riley calmed down enough to continue.  
“I guess he just stunned me.”  
Rick asked, “Did you ever lose consciousness?”  
“No. But I wish I had. He started driving, and I guess I just sat there. I wasn’t really sure what was happening. I couldn’t even wrap my head around the fact that he had done that to me. It made no sense. He drove me to the field behind where the closed down laundromat is...I don’t remember the address…”  
“Do you mean that old Senoia Launder Land?” Tara asked.  
“Yes, that’s the one. That where I called the guys. Where the ambulance came.”  
Tara got on her walkie to dispatch a few more officers to the field to look for evidence.  
“I started to I guess think more clearly and I said ‘Why did you hit me?’ He just started laughing. He grabbed me by my neck and tried to kiss me, and I bit his lip. He punched me a few times. I’ve never been punched in my life. I think that’s when he broke my nose, then he backhanded me with his right hand, across right here,” she said, motioning to her swollen shut right eye.  
“Again I was stunned, but not unconscious. I kind of fell back against the passenger door, and he pulled me sideways by my legs so I was laying down along the length of the seat and…..and he ripped open the front of my dress….” she lowered her eyes in shame.  
“Um, that paper bag over there,” she pointed to a brown bag on the table, “that has my dress that I wore. They said you might want it for evidence.”  
Tara nodded and put the bag on her lap.  
“I was wearing a little summer dress, just past my knees. It was my favorite dress. My bra, he ripped it right off my body. I don’t know where it is. My, um….my panties, too. And my shoes. Little black flats.”  
Tara got on her walkie and told them group in the field, “Please be on the lookout for torn women’s undergarments and a pair of shoes.”  
Riley paused, and squeezed Sean’s hand tighter. She had been holding it the entire time. “He started undoing his pants, and I knew he was going to rape me. So I told him that I have herpes.” Looking up at Rick, she said, “I don’t, I swear to god I don’t. I just didn’t want him to rape me. But when I told him that, he got mad. Really mad. He got on top of me and was screaming at me, calling me a cunt and a whore. And then he started biting me.” She was crying again.  
Tara spoke softly. “Honey, do you remember the spots where he bit you?” Riley nodded and Tara asked, “Can you tell us?” Riley shook her head. She didn’t want to say. Tara took another tactic. “Can you just point?”  
Riley pointed to her left thigh, then her right. She pointed to her stomach. Four different spots on her breasts. Her hips. Her ear. “Um, he flipped me over and there are some on my back, and a couple on...my uh…”  
“Backside?” Rick offered and she nodded.  
“I was crying and it hurt so bad. He pushed in the cigarette lighter. I thought maybe he was done with me. I thought he was going to have a cigarette. I had never seen him smoke, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t. But when it popped out…..he burned me. Twice. On my stomach.”  
“And then...I thought again he was done. But he wasn’t. He went into the back of his truck and into his toolbox. He got out a screwdriver. And then he…..and then he…. he….. He put it inside of me. He called me a filthy diseased whore, he said he should kill me. I was screaming and crying, but there are no houses around there. No people. No one to hear me. I started to bleed from the screwdriver inside me, and he got mad at me for bleeding on his car. He climbed in and pulled me up, then put his arms around me and squeezed, like a wrestler. I’d try to get away, but he had my arms pinned to my sides. He’d squeeze and squeeze, and things would start to go dim, then he’d let go and I’d start coughing and trying to breathe and he’d punch my back. And he’d laugh. ‘What’s the matter, bitch? Breathing problems?’ He must have done that at least five times. And each time I thought ‘This is when I die.’ But it wasn’t. He stopped squeezing me, and I just kind of flopped back in the seat, trying to breathe. He looked at me for a minute, then he straddled me, put his hands around my neck and squeezed. I scratched at him - they took the samples from under my nails - and got a good one on his face. He let go of me with one hand and just twisted my left wrist, I guess that’s when it got sprained. I was fighting, but then I just stopped. It’s like a voice in my head said to just stop. It was okay, I had done all I could, I needed to just play dead. And I did. I just closed my eyes and went limp. He squeezed for a few more seconds, then stopped. He got out of the car, came around to my side, and dragged me out. He picked me up under my arms and dragged me to a far part of the field, and just dumped me there, like I was garbage. Somehow, through everything that happened, my purse stayed slung across my body. I remember him pushing it out of the way when he ripped open my dress. He dumped me, then got in his truck and left. He just left me there, like it was no big deal. I waited a few minutes, in case he came back, then did the only thing I could think of. I called Norman. And he and Sean came for me. They came…” she trailed off, nodding her head.  
“We’ll always come for you, no matter what,” Sean told her. Norman came around to the other side of her bed, and hugged her gently. “We love you sweetheart. They’re gonna find this guy, and he’ll pay for hurting you. I promise.”  
Sheriff Grimes had Norman go over the phone call when Riley called him. The nurse came in to give her a sedative into her IV. She started to panic, but Sean told her, “I’m staying right here, in this chair, all night. You won’t be alone.” Tara was assigned to stand guard outside the room, just in case.  
“Sean?” she squeaked out, her voice getting worse after her statement.  
“Right here, sweetie.”  
“Would you sing to me? Sing me some Elvis? Please? But I want YOUR voice, not Elvis.”  
He couldn’t turn her down. “Sure.” He cleared his throat and sang softly to her the first song that came to mind.  
“Love me tender, love me sweet, never let me go. You have made my life complete, and I love you so…”


	5. Chapter 5

Riley awoke with a start, waking Sean in the chair next to her bed. He jumped up immediately, asking, “What’s wrong? Are you ok? What do you need?”  
“Um, could you help me to the bathroom? I need to pee.”  
Sean ran his hand through his hair, turning pink. “Maybe we should call for a nurse…”  
“Please, Sean. I’ve had enough doctors and nurses to last me a lifetime. Just help me walk over. I can… ‘go’ by myself, I’m not a complete invalid.”  
He couldn’t tell her no, it was a simple request. He lowered the guardrail on the side of the bed, and helped her as she slowly and painfully sat up. She looked at him, “Can I ask one more favor?”  
“Sure.”  
“Could you reach around and tie the back of this gown shut so my ass isn’t on display?”  
Sean reached his arms around her gently as she leaned into him. He tied the gown shut, wishing he could have his arms around her under different circumstances, then helped her stand. Pushing her IV pole with one hand, she took tiny steps toward the bathroom, her face showing her pain. Sean paused and said, “Riley, maybe we could get a nurse to bring a bedpan- “  
“Sean Patrick, you listen to me right now! I have been through enough humiliation tonight. I am not going to pee in a damn bedpan! Jesus, can I please have a tiny amount of my dignity here?”  
“Ok, ok, I’m sorry. I just hate seeing you in pain is all.”

Finally they made it to the bathroom door and Sean asked her, “Uh, do you need me to help you….sit down?”  
“No, just wait out here for me.”  
Riley shut and locked the door, and shuffled over to the toilet. Within seconds, she was screaming. Sean immediately tried to open the door, but she had locked it. Tara and some nurses came running in as Sean pounded on the door calling her name. The room went quiet as they heard the toilet flush and the door unlock. Riley came out, looking both pained and embarrassed. Quietly, she said, “It burned.”  
Of course, her stitches. The nurse helped her back into bed, telling her that it probably would hurt less each time she went. That didn’t make her feel any better. Sean tucked her in, saying, “You scared the life outta me, pretty girl.”  
“I saw myself in the mirror. I’m not a pretty girl. Don’t call me that,” she said softly, turning away from him.  
His heart broke when she said that. He called her pretty for reasons besides her looks. The bruises on her face would heal. But he knew that was neither here nor there. He felt that she would see her swollen, bruised face in the mirror long after she healed up. Dammit. That Kevin was a dead man.

Norman called Sean’s phone early in the morning, waking him. He stepped out of the room so as not to wake Riley.   
“I should bring her some clothes, I think,” Norman said.  
“And shoes, too,” Sean added.  
“What kind of clothes should I bring? Like jeans?”  
“Let me check with the nurse and I’ll call you back.”  
Sean spoke quickly with the plump, older nurse. She suggested something easy to wear and not constricting, like sweatpants and a t-shirt. She also told him that they would need to remember a bra, panties, and shoes and socks. Apparently, those little things were usually forgotten.  
He texted the info to Norman, stretching his back and rolling his shoulders,standing outside of her room. He heard her scratchy, hoarse voice call out in a panic, “Sean! Norman!” Sean ran in, telling her, “I’m here, baby, I’m here! What’s wrong?” He gently wrapped his arms around her, and she said, “I woke up and you weren’t here. I got scared.”  
“I’m here, sweetheart. I’m sorry. Norman called and I went outside to take the call so I wouldn’t wake you.”

The nurse brought her some breakfast, but she barely picked at it. She mostly pushed it around her plate. Her doctor came in to check on her. Since she felt okay, relatively speaking, she was cleared to go home. The doctor told her, ‘Be sure to keep the cast on your wrist dry. We can take it off in about 3 weeks.”  
“3 weeks?” Riley exclaimed. “How am I supposed to shower?”  
“You’ll need to take baths.”  
“How am I supposed to wash my hair?”  
“You can wash it in the sink.”  
“With one hand?”  
The doctor looked at Riley, then at Sean, and told her, “I’m sure your boyfriend won’t mind helping you.”  
Riley turned pink and said, “He’s not my boyfriend. If he was, I wouldn’t have been on a date with Satan last night.”  
Sean told the doctor, “We’ll help her out with whatever she needs, thank you.”  
Riley asked to speak to the doctor privately for a moment. Sean didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but he heard her ask, “When I heal…..inside...I had my tubes tied, so I’m not worried about kids, but….will I be able to, you know, ‘be intimate’ with someone again?”  
“Yes, absolutely. Once the stitches dissolve, which should take about one to two weeks, you can have sex whenever you feel ready.”  
“Will they be able to tell? I mean….will I feel different? Will they feel a scar?” Sean’s heart broke to hear her ask that.  
“No, they won’t know unless you want to tell them.”

 

They waited for Norman to arrive with her clothes, and when he did, they stepped out and a nurse helped her dress. She was put in a wheelchair and wheeled out to the car.  
“We can stop at Bailey’s and pick up Herbie on the way home,” Norman told her. “I mean, if you’re okay with Sean driving him.”  
“Yeah. Um...did they….have they...found him yet?”  
Norman knew she’d ask. He’d talked to the sheriff this morning. “No, not yet, sweetie. But they’ve got the whole state of Georgia looking for him, and a few surrounding states as well. They’re watching his place and everything.”  
Riley just nodded. That wasn’t what she wanted to hear. They got into Norman’s jeep, with Sean insisting she ride shotgun. He had her lean the seat back and try to rest. The ride back to Senoia took about 40 minutes and she managed to doze off. Sean spoke to Norman from the backseat, telling him, “I don’t think we should leave her alone in the house, at least for the next few days. She needs to feel safe again.”  
“Shit!” Norman exclaimed. “I have a con to go to next weekend. I’ll just have to cancel.”  
“No you won’t. I don’t start filming until the following Wednesday. I’ll stay home with her.”  
“We’re gonna have to do stuff like buy groceries, too. At least until her face heals up. She’s not vain, but she won’t want to have people pointing and staring and asking questions. Shit’s bound to make the papers anyway.”  
They pulled into Bailey’s and Norman let Sean out to get Herbie started and drive it home behind them. Once they pulled into the driveway, Norman gently shook Riley to wake her up. “Come on, little lady, we’re home.” She started awake, and Sean walked up to help her out. Good thing he did, she took a step, got hit by a wave of vertigo, and swooned. He was on her right side so he was able to grab her uninjured arm and steady her. Unfortunately, she couldn’t get her bearings, so Sean simply picked her up in his arms and carried her. Poor Riley felt so miserable she didn’t protest. They had given her a few prescriptions for painkillers, and Norman went back into town to fill them for her. Sean asked her, “Do you want to lay on the couch or your bed?”  
“The couch. I don’t want to be by myself right now.”  
Sean helped her lay down on part of the big L-shaped couch, and unlaced her shoes. After he took them off, he asked if she wanted a blanket. When she didn’t answer, he looked up and saw she was already asleep again. He went and got a blanket out of the hall closet and covered her gently, and sat close to her. Every time he looked at her, he wanted to cry. He couldn’t even imagine the pain, the fear, and the humiliation she had gone through. It was just supposed to be a fun date. The first one that she’d had, by her own admission, in years. She finally went on one, and the guy tried to kill her. Eye In the Dark came out, as if on cue. He hopped up on the couch next to her, and Sean softly said, “Easy, Eye. She had a bad night.” The sweet kitty went up and sniffed softly at her face, as if assuring himself that yes, this was his friend. Satisfied, he then curled up tightly against her body, as close to her as he could get without laying on top of her, and began to loudly purr like a little motor. Sean watched as Riley gave a soft smile in her sleep. He gently brushed some hair off of her cheek, and, still asleep, she turned her battered face into his hand. Sean remembered that Norman told him Eye had liked Riley from the start. That cat never liked anyone to begin with, he really had to warm up to you. But Riley had come over for a party Norm had thrown and Eye had jumped right in her lap like they were old friends. Norman had told her, “That cat doesn’t like anyone!” Riley had just shrugged and said, “I’m not anyone, I’m me.” Everyone liked her: people in town, customers at the bar she had worked at, the people she met at Norman’s parties who were mostly cast and crew of The Walking Dead….she was friendly and likeable. The only one who didn’t like her had been this Kevin guy. Goddamn freak. He wasn’t kidding when he told the sheriff that he’d better find Kevin before Sean did. If Sean got to him, Kevin would never make it to jail, he’d go straight to the morgue.   
Riley tried to roll over on her left side, jarring her injured wrist. She shot awake, screaming in pain. Sean was right there, trying to soothe her. She was crying and he was pretty sure it was due to much more than just the pain of her wrist. “It hurts so bad, Sean,” she cried.   
“I know, sweetie. Norman should be home soon with your prescription and you can take one right away.” He put his arms around her and held her gently against his chest. He could hear her murmuring something, but didn’t quite catch it. “What did you say, Ri?”  
“Why, Sean? Why did he do this? What did I do wrong? I just don’t understand!” She turned her tear stained face up to his. His heart broke all over again. She looked so distraught and confused.  
Sean took her gently by the shoulders and said, “Listen to me: you did nothing, absolutely NOTHING, to deserve what he did. I don’t care if you’d burned down his house and called his grandmother a whore, you still didn’t deserve this. Kevin is a sick bastard. That’s all.”  
Riley cast her eyes down, “I shouldn’t have told him I had herpes. I thought it would stop him, and I just made things worse.”  
Sean just didn’t know what to say. He wrapped his arms around her again, kissing the top of her head. “Riley, you did everything right. YOU aren’t the problem.”

After a few minutes, she dried her eyes and wiped her nose. He convinced her to try to eat a little bit, as she likely wouldn’t be able to take her pain pills on an empty stomach. He popped the remaining enchiladas from the night before into the oven to reheat per her instructions. They were about to turn on the TV when there was a knock on the door. Sean went to answer it, and came back in a few minutes later with Sheriff Grimes. Riley jumped up when she saw him come in, excited. “Did you find him? Did you get him?”  
Rick felt horrible having to tell her they hadn’t, she slumped back down on the couch, defeated. “But,” the Sheriff continued, “we found out something about him. His name isn’t Kevin Wilkinson. It’s Brian Albert. He’s not from Idaho, he’s from Dallas. And he’s wanted in Kansas and Massachusetts.”  
“What for?” Riley asked in a whisper, afraid of the answer.  
The Sheriff paused, then said, “Murder. He’s killed two girls. Raped them, beat them, and strangled them.”  
Riley stood up, and stumbled to the bathroom, and they could hear her throwing up. Sean called out to her, and she said, “I’m ok….”  
Sheriff Grimes turned to Sean. “Look, I didn’t come here to scare her. But you need to know the truth. We’ve got APB’s out on him in Georgia and all surrounding states, but this guy is a damn chameleon. He prefers small towns to big cities - it’s easier to talk your way into a job. Most small town folk are trusting and not too many do background checks. Just keep aware of your surroundings. We’ll have a car go by a couple of times a day. I noticed you have an alarm system here. USE IT. Keep it on and armed always. Maybe get some motion lights and cameras outside. We need to catch this guy. It’s starting to show up on the news.”  
“Oh no.”  
“Yeah. They haven’t mentioned her name, but it’s only a matter of time. Once he finds out she survived, that she can ID him……” he trailed off.  
“Okay. Thanks for the heads up, Sheriff.”  
“Sorry I didn’t have better news.”

When the sheriff left, Sean pulled the enchiladas out of the oven, and went to check on Riley. She had curled up on the rug in front of the bathtub after getting sick, and was staring blankly into space. Sean reached down to help her up. “Come on, sweetie. Lunch is ready. Let’s get a little food in you so you can take your pain pill when Norman gets here.” As if on cue, Norman came in, calling out.  
Riley got up on shaky legs and let Sean help her into the kitchen. Norman was there with a small pharmacy bag, and a big bunch of gerbera daisies. He told her, “They didn’t have any sunflowers but I know these are your second favorite.”  
She hugged Norman with her one good arm. “Thanks so much.” Sean muttered, “Show off,” and she giggled, and hugged him. “Thank you for taking care of me while he was gone.”  
Norman put her flowers in a vase and sat down to lunch with them.  
“Just saw Sheriff Grimes leave. What was that about?” When he saw Riley’s face fall, he knew it wasn’t good news. She stopped eating and started pushing her food around her plate while Sean updated him. Norman listened carefully then went and got his laptop. He opened it and logged into Amazon and immediately ordered several motion detector lights and security cameras with next day shipping, telling Riley, “We are going to do everything to keep you safe from this fucker. I’m gonna see about getting private security around the house as well.”  
She was quiet at first, then said softly, “Maybe I should leave.”  
Both men looked at her. “Where the hell are you planning on going?” Sean asked. She just shrugged. “I left Portland and just kind of ended up here. I could just drive again. End up somewhere else. Then I wouldn’t be such a problem.”  
Norman exploded. “Dammit, Riley! You are one of my best friends! I am going to protect you, period. You are not leaving. Not while he is out there.”  
Sean added, “I’m with Norman. I won’t risk losing you, girl. I just won’t. If you left tomorrow, I’d do whatever I have to do to find you, just to be sure you were safe.” He meant it. As long as Kevin or Brian or whoever he was was out there, she wasn’t safe. The safest place for her was by their sides. Sean had a black belt and was more than willing to fuck that guy up, and Norman always had a ton of fans. Usually that was annoying, but in this case, it meant witnesses - which meant Kevin would have to think twice before trying anything.  
Sean walked over to her chair, and crouched down. He took her good hand in his very gently and said, “Please don’t leave. Stay here, we’ll keep you safe. Forever if we have to. But don’t leave.” Damn him and those baby blue eyes. “Ok,” she said. “I’ll stay.”


	6. Chapter 6

Riley dozed off and on laying on the couch all day, those pain pills really knocked her out. When the guys went to bed, they couldn’t bear to wake her up. Sean opted to sleep on the other part of the big couch, just so she wouldn’t be alone if she woke up. They both slept with their heads in the crux of the big L shaped couch. With her broken nose, she had to breathe through her mouth, and the steady breaths lulled Sean to sleep.

He woke up in the night to her whimpering. Poor thing couldn’t even get a decent night’s sleep. He scooted a little closer to her head, and gently stroked her hair and said quietly in her ear, “Everything is okay, Riley. I’m here. I won’t let anything happen to you. I’ll keep you safe.” Her whimpering stopped and she seemed fine after that.

When they woke the next morning, she told them, “I had such a horrible dream. I dreamt I was back in the truck with him. But then Sean showed up in my dream, and Kevin disappeared, and I was all better.”  
“How about that?” Sean said. Norman looked at him, but didn’t say anything. He got up to head to the set, joking, “Ok kids, I’m heading to the office. No fighting while I’m at work.” Sean and Riley answered, “Yes, daddy,” in unison.  
“Ha ha.”  
“Hey boss man,” Riley said, “Can I use your bathtub today? I have to take a bath because of my cast.” Riley’s bathroom only had a shower stall.  
“Of course. Sean is here if you need anything, ok?” Riley followed him out onto the porch, rolling her eyes and saying, “Yeah, I know.” Norman closed the door so they were alone. “Come on, now. He’s stepped up.”  
She sighed. “Yeah, he has. But I’ve still gotta give him a hard time once in awhile.” Norman smiled, “I wouldn’t expect anything less.”

 

When Riley went back in the house, Sean was putting the breakfast dishes in the dishwasher. He looked up and smiled. “Hey pretty girl.”  
“How can you call me that when my face looks like hamburger meat?”  
“Because pretty is as pretty does. You have a pretty heart, and a pretty soul. And that pretty spills over onto you. All of you. You’ll always be a pretty girl to me.”  
Riley gave him a small smile.

Sean was going over his script later when he heard a strange sound in the kitchen. Walking in, he saw Riley attempting to sweep with her one good arm.  
“What the hell are you doing girl?”  
“It’s Monday. Monday is when I sweep the kitchen and bathrooms and clean the windows. I have a system.”  
Sean shook his head. “Not today. You need to rest.”  
Riley lowered her head. “Sean, if I sit and do nothing, I’ll just think about it all day. I don’t want to think about it. I just want to be as normal as I can. I don’t want to think about it ever again.”  
Sean slumped against the counter. He didn’t think of that. He figured she’d rest and relax and be right as rain in a few days. With what she’d been through….she might never be “right” again. He saw her arm the house alarm as soon as Norman left, even though he was there with her. Jesus. All Sean wanted to do was help her. Make that day disappear. “Riley,” he said taking a step toward her. Riley took a step back.  
This girl had never backed down from anyone, least of all him. She was backing away now, and she didn’t even realize she was doing it. He stepped back and tried again. “Why don’t you let me sweep since you kind of need both hands for it? You can still clean the windows if you want. Better yet, why don’t you take that bath?”  
Riley considered it. She did kind of feel like she had Kevin’s handprints all over her. “Yeah, okay. That would be nice, I think.”  
“Do you want me to help pin up your hair so it doesn’t get wet? I can wash it later in the sink if you want.”  
“What do you know about pinning up long hair?”  
“I know shit.”

 

He followed her into her room and she sat at her makeshift vanity. He gently pulled her long hair up into a high ponytail on the top of her head, then twisted it and used a few bobby pins to make a bun that wasn’t too tight, but wasn’t in danger of falling out, either. “Thanks, Sean. I appreciate it.”  
“You’re welcome. Let me know if you need anything else.”  
Riley went into Norman’s bathroom with the big tub and started running the water.

 

Sean happened to walk by a few minutes later and heard her fussing and making frustrated noises. “Stupid thing….son of a….urgh...dammit!”  
“Ri, you ok?”  
“No, dammit, I’m not!” She answered angrily. “Hold on a sec….”  
The door opened and she was still dressed. Her shirt was still on and her arm with the cast was still in its sling. “I can’t undo this stupid sling! It’s pissing me off!” He would have laughed if she hadn’t been so frustrated.  
“Ok, come here,” Sean told her. He gently undid the clasp holding the sling together while holding her arm so the sudden weight didn’t make it drop. Gently, he slid her arm through it. “Better?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Need anything else?” he wiggled his eyebrows at her, always the flirt.  
“No, I can undress myself!”  
Laughing, Sean left.

Thirty minutes later, she walked into the kitchen wearing another pair of baggy sweatpants and a tshirt, and Sean helped her re-attach the sling. Riley started trying to pull the pins out of her hair, but Sean stopped her. “Let’s go in your room so I can take those out,” he told her. “If you yank them out with one hand, you’ll pull your hair.”  
They went into Riley’s room and she sat down at the vanity. He noticed she had draped her bath towel over the mirror. He reached for it to pull it down, but Riley stopped him. “Don’t,” she said quietly. “I put it there so I wouldn’t have to look at myself in the mirror right now.”  
“Riley, this isn’t your fault.”  
“It has nothing to do with fault, Sean. I don’t need a constant reminder of what he did every time I walk in here. I can’t stand to see myself like this, it turns my stomach. I don’t know how you guys can stand it.”  
Sean didn’t know what to say to that. Sure, she looked bad, but it wasn’t stomach turning. Hell, he’d gotten beat up pretty bad just from sparring, and Norman came home at least once a week with some random injury that only his clumsy ass could get. But Riley had just been being her sweet self - not sparring or working on a physical show. Just sitting in someone’s car on a date. Something people did all over the world every day. He really was going to kill that guy if he saw him.  
He gently pulled the pins out of her hair, then grabbed the hairbrush off the table and started brushing her hair. When he was done, he leaned down and placed a gentle kiss to the top of her head. Riley laughed and said, “What was that for?”  
“For being you.”  
Sean came around and crouched down in front of her, and took her right hand in his. “This is a bump in the road, sweetheart. You will heal. You aren’t alone.” He kissed her hand, then leaned forward and kissed the side of her forehead that didn’t have stitches.

About 5 days later, Riley had an appointment to get her forehead stitches out. The swelling on her eyes wasn’t completely gone, so Norman insisted on taking her, over her protests. “I’m absolutely fine, Normie!”  
“No you’re not. Your eyes are still swollen. I’m not letting you drive anywhere. Period.”  
Riley rolled her eyes but complied. Sean asked, “Can I come?” Riley looked at him. “Why?”  
“Because I get lonely at the house all by myself,” he smiled. Dammit, his smile was starting to grow on her. “Yeah, you can come.”

At the hospital, the doctor carefully snipped the sutures and used tweezers to gently pull them out. Handing Riley a mirror, she said with a smile, “Have a look.”  
Riley looked at the guys. They knew she’d been avoiding mirrors like the plague for the past week, and they nodded encouragingly. Slowly she raised the mirror to her face. Her scar was just a pink line, but to her it looked like a big, red, jagged gash - like a blinking light on her face letting the world know what had happened. Looking at the rest of her face, she saw that the bruises around her eyes were fading to a sickly yellow, along with the fingerprints around her neck. She swallowed thickly and said quietly, “Thank you, doctor,” as she handed back the mirror, her eyes on the floor.  
The doctor exchanged a concerned look quickly with the men and told her, “That will fade with time. Pretty soon, you won’t even notice it. It’s not even that noticeable now, really.” Riley just nodded but didn’t look up. “Hey, let’s get going, ok?” Norman asked. She nodded again, but when Norman went to take her arm, she shied away from his touch. He and Sean looked at each other but didn’t say anything.

The drive home was quiet, uncomfortably so, so Sean and Norman began to plan the weekend. Norman had to go to a con, so Sean and Riley would be home by themselves. Norman said, “No wild parties while I’m gone!” And Sean countered with, “Of course not dad, just the typical hookers and blow.” They didn’t even get a smile out of Riley.  
When they got back to the house, she told them she didn’t feel well and wanted to lay down for a bit. She headed to her room and closed the door.  
Sean and Norman both grabbed a beer and sat down on his couch. “Damn,” Norman said. “I’ve never seen her like this. Maybe I should cancel the con after all.”  
“No. She needs us to be as normal as possible right now. If we start walking on eggshells around her, we’ll just make it worse.”

Later that afternoon, Riley came shuffling out of her room, and started to listlessly pull out some pots to start dinner. “Actually, I thought I’d get take out tonight from that place over in Peachtree that we like so much,” Norman told her. She just shrugged and began putting the pots back. Sean said, “Sweetie are you ok?” He went to put his hand on her shoulder, and she shied away, nodding. 

Norman left to go get the chinese food, leaving Sean and Riley alone. He turned on the TV, asking her if there was anything in particular she wanted to see. She shook her head and put her feet up on the couch. Sean looked at her little feet and noticed her toenail polish was chipped. Without her even noticing, he walked down the hall and slipped into her room, grabbing the bottle of red nail polish and a bottle of polish remover off of her vanity table, then into the hall closet for some cotton balls. He put everything on the coffee table, then sat down on the couch and said, “Here, put your feet on my lap.” Riley looked at everything on the table and said, “You went in my room? What are you even doing?”  
“The polish on your toes is chipped. I’m going to take it off and redo it.”  
“You’re going to polish my toes?”  
“Yes.”  
“Are you on crack?” she looked at him.   
“Girl, give me your damn feet and hush already.”  
Riley wanted to see what a hack job he could do on her toes so she put her little feet into his lap, and to his credit, he diligently went to work. He carefully took off all of the old polish, then wound tissues around her toes to separate them, and started to carefully paint them. He was actually doing a really good job, too.  
He suddenly told her, “My mom used to paint her toenails every two weeks. I watched her do it all the time. Always red or pink: red in the winter and fall, and pink in the spring and summer. Red seems to be the most popular nail color, I guess it feels glamorous,” he said absently. Riley was kind of floored about the whole thing. She never even had a boyfriend who would rub her feet when she was just out of the shower, and here was this guy painting her nails. He turned to look at her, and gave her a smile, and she smiled back. “Sometimes,” he said as he finished and closed up the bottle, “you just need a little something to feel like yourself again, you know?”  
“Yeah, I know.”  
He leaned forward and started blowing on them to help dry them.  
“Hey, Sean?  
“Hmm?”  
“Thanks for helping out this week. Like with the sweeping and setting the table. And pinning up my hair. And painting my toenails. I don’t like asking for help or needing help, I’ve always been kind of self-sufficient. I just want to be able to do stuff myself. You and Normie have both really stepped up and helped me.”  
“What are friends for?”

Norman came back a few minutes later with bags of Chinese food and stopped short when he saw them. Riley with her feet with tissues all stuffed between her toes in Sean’s lap, and Sean holding one of her little feet in his hand as he blew on it. He figured out pretty quickly what was going on - there was a smell of nail polish in the air, as well as the bottle on the table - but it still was a bizarre sight. “So, are you gonna perm each others hair or did you guys want to eat?” he smiled.  
Norman was really glad Sean did what he did. He didn’t like her shrinking back for their touch, she was such an affectionate girl, always hugging him. That was why she had made such great friends with the regulars back at the bar. She would always greet them by name and before they left would lean over the bar to give them a hug and tell them to drive home safely. It wasn’t unusual for her to arrange a ride home for a customer who’d had too much, or have them stick around until closing so she could give them a ride herself. Riley had lived in this run down little trailer park at the edge of town, and got along with everyone. The people in the park were sad to see her go when she moved in with Norman.  
And now, here she sat in his house, nodding off on the couch, her tummy full of Chinese food, her face full of yellowing bruises, and Sean Flanery still rubbing her feet. Life was weird.

Norman left around noon the next day to go to a con out in “Bumfuck, Midwest” as Sean called it. “You know, one of the square middle states, like Wyoming or something.”  
“I’m not going to fucking Wyoming, dumbass.”  
“Where are you going?”  
“Uh...Nebraska.”  
“So even MORE midwest and square shaped.”  
“Dude, shut up.”  
Riley followed him into his room as he finished packing. “Got your toothbrush, toothpaste, razor, and hair brush?  
“Yes.”  
“Condoms?”  
Norman turned red and said, “Dammit, Riley!”  
“Do you have condoms?”  
“Fuck….yes, ok? I have damn condoms.”  
“Good. I hope you get to actually use them this time.”  
Norman didn’t mind hooking up with girls at cons, but it was rare these days. Not for lack of trying, but because he was so fucking exhausted all the time. He used to just sleep on the plane, but some fan had posted video of him snoring away in first class, and he was too embarrassed to do it now.  
He grabbed his bag and the keys to his jeep, and gave Riley a hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Let Sean take care of the house this weekend. He knows it’s your time off. And be careful. We have the motion lights on, but the cameras aren’t hooked up yet. Regardless of what has happened, you know I worry about you.”   
“I know.”  
It was true, he really didn’t like leaving her at the house when he went to cons. So far, nothing had happened, but he was afraid of some crazed fan messing with her. It hadn’t happened, but still.

Friday passed without incident. Saturday, Sean asked Riley if she wanted him to wash her hair. So that night found her leaning over with her head in the kitchen sink. Credit where it’s due, Sean was good. He had a gentle touch, and he massaged her scalp so well, she would have fallen asleep if she’d been seated. After washing her hair, he carefully rinsed it out with the sink sprayer, then applied the conditioner, using his fingers to gently comb it through her strands. When he finished, he helped her wrap her head in a towel, then marched her directly in the bathroom, where he carefully combed out her hair and slowly blow dried it. Unfortunately, she had to look at herself in the mirror, but told him, “Wow, my hair never looked so good.”  
“Most people don’t have the patience to dry their hair slowly. And it’s hard to get the back properly.”  
She smiled at him and without thinking, told him, “The next time I have a date….” They looked at each other. She was going to make a joke about having him do her hair for her next date. But she was pretty sure she’d never do that again. Riley was pretty sure she’d be afraid for the rest of her life. Sean looked down at this poor sweet girl. He was going to kill that Kevin guy, he was sure of it. Riley dropped her eyes to the floor and started to cry again. He took her in his arms and held her for a long time.  
They sat and watched movies on the couch, her head on Sean’s shoulder. He turned to ask her a question and saw she had fallen asleep.


	7. Chapter 7

Sunday was a lazy day, although Riley insisted on making dinner. She didn’t like Norman to come home from a con and have nothing to eat. It was typical for her to make dinner, fix him a plate, and put it in the fridge covered with plastic. He usually came home in the wee hours and loved having “real” food to eat.  
They turned in at about 11:00 p.m.  
At 1:00 a.m., Riley was awakened by a loud, insistent banging on the front door. She put on her robe and slippers and stepped out in the hallway just as Sean exited his room in a pair of sleep pants and a tank top. Riley asked, “Who do you think it is at this hour? It’s not Norman.”  
“Stay back in case it’s trouble.”  
He walked to the door and looked through the peephole then opened the door. It was Officer Chambler. “Are you guys ok?” she exclaimed.  
“We’re fine,” Riley said, then added, “Oh wow. You look nice.”  
Tara was dressed in civilian clothes, a nice dress, and said, “Oh, thanks! Look, I’m technically off duty, but I was just about to go home after a date, and I don’t know. I just thought I should drive by your place. I went by twice today as usual, but something told me to check again. Riley, your car has been sort of vandalized.”  
“Herbie? What happened?”  
Sean was already on the phone to Sheriff Grimes, telling him what was going on.  
“It’s not anything bad, like it wasn’t smashed or anything. Someone wrote on the windows in shoe polish. Maybe it was just a jealous fan?”  
The three of them walked out to the driveway. There stood her car, her beloved Herbie, with the word “WHORE” written on both the back and front windows in white shoe polish. She and Tara both noticed the paper slid under the windshield wiper, and Tara removed it carefully with her fingertips.  
Unfolding it on the hood, it said, “Saw on the news you’re still alive. Not for long. I’m watching you.” Tara said, “Who would-”  
“It’s Kevin,” Riley said. “This is his writing, I’m sure of it.” Going back inside, she grabbed her keys off the hook, opened up Herbie, and pulled a slip of paper out of the glove compartment. “This is the receipt and warranty for my car battery. He filled it out. The writing is the same, see the A’s and E’s he uses? The same on the note, my windows, and the warranty.” Sean grabbed the hose to rinse off the windows, but Tara stopped him. “Rick is on his way, he’ll need pictures.”   
Just then, Rick pulled up and came out of his car shaking his head. “I’m sorry, Riley.”  
“Yeah, me too. Do you need me? It’s cold out here.”  
“No, you can go inside. We’ll take care of this.”  
Rick pulled out a camera and an evidence bag for the note. After Riley went inside, Norman came screaming into the driveway. He jumped out and ran to Rick. “I could see your cherry lights from the end of the road! Is Riley ok?”  
“She’s fine,” Rick assured him. “Her car was vandalized sometime during the night. Deputy Chambler was off duty and on her way home from a date and she decided to drive by. She saw it and checked on Riley and Sean immediately. They’re both ok.”  
Sean added, “She’s inside. I’m gonna clean this off,” as he turned on the water from the garden hose.  
Norman walked in the house. Riley was sitting on the couch with her head in her hands. He sat next to her. “Hey sweetie,” he said softly, putting his arm around her shoulders.  
“I didn’t know it made the news.”  
“Neither did I. I’m sorry, Ri. I should have gotten off my ass and set up those cameras. This is my fault.”  
“No, it’s not. It wouldn’t have done us any good anyway. We already know it was him, and we were all asleep. Greasy bastard.”  
Sean came in, closed the door behind him, and reset the alarm. He came over and sat on the other side of her, asking, “You ok?”  
She gave him a look and he said, “I guess that’s a stupid question. Want some tea?”  
Sighing, she said, “I’d prefer something stronger, to be honest.” The turning to Norman, she said, “There’s some dinner for you in the fridge, I know you must be hungry.”

Norman got up to put his bag in his room and get some food, and Sean got Riley a small bit of whiskey, and one for himself. She took a sip, wrinkling her nose and coughing,and Sean told her, “First sip is the hardest.” She took another sip….he was right. He noticed she was shivering, so he grabbed the blanket off the back of the couch and put it over her shoulders. She seemed to be staring at the ice in her glass.

Norman came back in and fixed himself a drink as well, and the three of them sat side by side on the couch in silence. Suddenly, Riley said what they all were thinking.

“They’ve got an APB out on this guy in five fucking states, and he walks right up to our door. How the fuck is that possible? Everyone is looking for him...Senoia isn’t that big! There’s, like 4000 people here, that’s not a lot! Where the fuck is he hiding?” Riley was scared and angry.  
The guys didn’t have an answer. They heard a tinkling noise and realized it was the ice in Riley’s glass. She was shaking. She downed the rest of her drink and put the empty glass on the coffee table. “I’m never going to be safe, you can see that, right? He won’t leave me alone until I’m dead. Fuck. I wish he’d just finished the job.”  
“NO!” Sean shouted as he stood up, startling the other two. “God dammit Riley! You are safe! He didn’t try to come in the house, he knows he can’t! He can vandalize the cars all he wants, but he can’t get to you. You’re still safe!”  
Riley stood as well and shouted back at him. “Oh really? Are you going to keep me safe? For how long, Sean? Until you wrap your movie and go back home to La-La Land? Then what? Yes, I’m safe in the house…..but eventually I will have to go out and do shit, like buy groceries and run errands, you know, the shit I was hired for? Then what? He’s just going to lie in wait for me!”

Norman had been sitting quietly and spoke softly. “I’m gonna hire a security detail. They’ll watch the house and if you leave, they’ll follow.”  
Riley turned to him. “Absolutely not.”  
“We need to keep you safe, sweetie. It’ll help keep all of us safe from fans, too.”  
“I’m not Michael fucking Jackson. I don’t need my own bodyguard! That’s too much trouble. I’m supposed to make your life easier, not cost you money with my own private security guard.”  
“Sit down sweetie. There’s something you should know.” Norman said gently.

She sat and he told her a story that few people knew. “When Boondock Saints was released, Mingus was only a few months old. It didn’t do well in the theaters, but got a nice cult following. Me and Helena were still together, and I started going to cons and stuff for it. Just small stuff, not the scale of shit now. This one woman really liked the movie, and REALLY liked me in it. She would show up randomly at all the tri-state cons. Not a big deal, I just thought she was a big fan and that it was cool. Because I was dating Helena and she was this famous model, it was in the papers that we had a kid. Well the first time I knew something was off with this chick was when she asked me if me and ‘Lena were married. I told her that no, we were not. She said good, because ‘Lena wasn’t good enough for me. I told her to not talk about her like that because I was very much in love with her, and that was the mother of my child. She got an attitude and was like, ‘You’ll see.’  
Well, I started getting weird shit in the mail. All these pics of Helena with guys. Most of them were taken months or years before I even dated her, and the rest were really bad photoshop jobs. Someone was trying to make it look like she was cheating on me. And then like 10 pics of her out to dinner with her old friend Mikey, and a note saying, ‘She is fucking this guy behind your back.’ Considering Mikey is gay AND his partner was at the dinner with them, but carefully cropped out of every photo, I wasn’t worried. I had a feeling it was that one girl, but what can you do? Nothing was signed, no return addresses, and they were all being mailed to me care of my publicist. I more or less laughed it off.  
Then I started to get the same shit mailed to my address where I was living at the time in Chinatown. I got a little freaked, because this meant she knew where I lived. All the postmarks were from New York City. I got a little nervous. I got a few letters telling me to break up with Helena ‘or else’. I’d kept everything she sent me up to then, and we got the police involved.  
Then she sent a picture of little Mingus standing looking out the window of my apartment. She wrote on it to get rid of Helena or something would happen to Ming. That was when we got scared. ‘Lena took Ming with her to Prague for a couple of months. That was to keep him safe and also, we were hoping to draw this lady out of the woodwork, hoping she’d think we split. The cops put surveillance on my place. She broke in while I was at an audition. In her bag, she had all these pictures of me she had taken, plus duct tape, rope...and a gun. She was obsessed, a stalker. She went to jail.”  
Riley was stunned, she’d never heard about this. “Did that stop her?”  
“Sort of. She committed suicide in jail. I’ve never wished anyone dead, but I didn’t feel sorry for her. She apparently was telling people in jail that her boyfriend was a big movie star, and was going to get her out.  
Bottom line: she was obsessed. No matter where I went, she would have come after me. Kevin is the same way. You leave? He’ll follow you. Remember what Sheriff Grimes said - he’s a chameleon. You wouldn’t even know he was there until it was too late. I would do this for any friend of mine who was in danger. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”  
“Great. Now I get to feel like the President’s kid with the damn Secret Service following me.”  
Sean finally spoke again. “Deal with it. We care about you far too much to let anything happen.”


	8. Chapter 8

Norman got the video cameras set up and had them on a feed where they could be viewed from any TV or computer in the house. Within two days, he had hired a private security detail. He came in the house one day with a guy who had to be at least 6’7”. He made Norman’s 5’10” look positively short, and at 5’2”, Riley felt like a Munchkin. The guy looked like he ate linebackers for breakfast. Norman told her, “This is Brice. He’s going to be heading up the group of people that will be watching everything for us. Brice, this is Riley, our precious cargo.” Riley gave Norman a dirty look and stood, sticking out her hand for Brice to shake, and saying, “Uh….hi?” His hand was like a giant bear paw next to hers. He was definitely kind of imposing. But then a big smile split his face, and he leaned down more to her height and told her, “It will be a pleasure to help keep you safe, miss.” With that smile, he wasn’t nearly as scary, he seemed like a big teddy bear of a guy.  
They chatted briefly, and she learned that he had played football in college, and had considered being a cop. He liked protecting people and keeping them safe. He had a wife and two teenage boys. Riley asked him, “Are you sure about this? This guy is a psycho. I want you to get home to your wife and kids at night. I don’t want to be the reason your sons end up without a daddy.” Brice just smiled at her. “Miss Riley, I was in the Secret Service for one of Clinton’s terms. You don’t need to worry about me. And all my associates are hand picked by me. And if there’s one thing, we don’t like, one thing that we HATE...it’s a man who roughs up a lady. He isn’t getting anywhere near you, I can promise you that. There will be someone on detail 24/7. You are safe. I promise you.” Riley liked him already. She knew she would sleep better with he and his men out there.

A few days later Sean and Norman were discussing everything on the patio while Riley vacuumed inside   
Sean said, “I should put that Friend Finder app on her phone. Just in case.”  
Norman huffed a laugh. “After that story you told the world about me getting locked in your hotel bathroom, there is no way she’ll let you.”  
“What if I promise that I won’t prank her?”  
“She still won’t.”  
“Can’t you make her? Make it like a condition of her continued employment or something?”  
“Seriously? She’d just quit and leave. There’s no way. Believe me, I’d like a way to track her too, for the time being. I mean, what if she hadn’t been able to call us that night? It was really cold, she could have frozen to death.”  
“Maybe we could put it on and not tell her…”  
Norman looked over at Sean. “Is it possible to put it on there without her knowing?”  
“I did it to you.”

They waited until that night when Riley was asleep, then snuck her phone out of her room, and Sean put the app on it. She was none the wiser.

After a few more days, Riley’s face was healed up enough to start running her errands again. She decided to drive into town to get some groceries. Sean asked her if she was sure she was ok to drive as she still had her soft cast for another week. “I didn’t really think about it,” she mumbled. “I’m just tired of sitting around the house.”  
“How about if I go with you? That way, if you need any help with turns or whatever, I’ll be there to help instead of you struggling. I’d hate for you to hurt your wrist more. Besides, if I go with, the Secret Service won’t follow.”  
“Why not?”  
“Because I’m your own personal ninja.”  
Riley laughed and told him, “You can come, but I’m totally making you push the cart.”

It turned out that Sean was right about helping with turns. With the cast on her hand, the left turn into the parking lot of the store was nearly impossible. Sean was able to help her, and didn’t even say, “I told you so.” Although he did compliment her on Herbie’s cleanliness, saying he had noticed it when he drove him home from Bailey’s. “Herbie’s been good to me all these years. The least I can do is keep him clean.”  
“I’ve been meaning to ask...did you name him after Herbie the Love Bug from those movies from the 60’s and 70’s?”  
Riley smiled. “Yeah. My mom introduced me to Herbie through that Sunday night show ‘The Wonderful World of Disney’. We used to watch it together. When Herbie first came on, she was so excited. It was released when she was a senior in high school, and was her favorite. It’s kinda why I wanted a Beetle in the first place. I like this car more than I like most people.”  
Entering the store, Sean grabbed a cart and they started filling it with groceries. They were getting the last few things when Riley realized that they needed milk which they had already passed on the first aisle. Sean told her, “Don’t worry, I’ll go grab it.” While he went to get it, Riley left the cart at one end of the aisle and walked to the other, trying to find the bread Norman liked for sandwiches. She beat Sean back to the cart, and saw a folded piece of paper on top of the groceries. She unfolded it and read it.  
When Sean got back to the cart, Riley was pale and shaking, holding a piece of paper in her hand.  
“Riley? Riley! Look at me!” She looked at him, and her face was so blank it scared him. “What’s going on, girl?”  
She handed him the piece of paper. It said, “That blonde prick won’t always be around. I’m watching you. You’re a dead woman.”  
Sean muttered, “Shit.” Riley went on autopilot and started heading to the checkout. Sean followed her, looking around for the guy, and pulling out his phone to call Officer Grimes.   
They were sitting in Riley’s beloved Herbie in the parking lot when the cops flew in. Riley was silent when she handed them the note. Had she seen him? No. Had she seen anything out of the ordinary? No.  
Her driver’s side door was open, and Rick crouched next to it. “I’m sorry, Riley. It’s his writing but you already knew that.”  
“He’s getting closer.”  
“What do you mean?”  
“First he was in the driveway. This time he was less than 25 feet away. He’s getting closer. He’s playing with me. He wants me to know that he can get close. He wants me to know I’m not safe. Why is he doing this?” Hot tears ran down her cheeks and she wiped them away angrily. Rick pulled a carefully folded tissue out of his pocket and offered it to her. She hesitated and he chuckled and said, “It’s clean, I promise. My wife puts a few in my pocket every day, ‘just in case’.” She took it and wiped her eyes. Rick told her, “The store has a security camera….but it wasn’t on.” Riley was dejected. She felt like the whole universe was working against her.  
Sean spoke up, asking, “Is it ok to take her home? I think we’ve had enough excitement for one day.”  
Rick stood and told him, “Yeah, I think that’s a good idea. I’m actually gonna follow you back to the house, just as a precaution.”  
Sean turned to Riley. “You want me to drive?” She nodded miserably and they switched seats.

Kevin watched from the driver’s seat of a minivan. He would need to pull away soon, they would likely start checking all the cars that were leaving. But he was a fucking master of disguise. He’d masqueraded as a pregnant lady, and nobody had given him a second glance. It was easy to slip the note in her cart. He was giggling to himself at how miserable she looked. He’d play with her like this until he got bored, then he’d get her alone and finish the job. Now he knew he’d better check for a damn pulse afterward.


	9. Chapter 9

Riley was silent on the drive home. As they pulled up to the house, Brice met with Officer Grimes and Sean and they told him what happened. Riley went into the kitchen and there was a soft knock on the door and Brice poked his head in.  
“Miss Riley?”  
“Oh, hello Brice. Did you need something?”  
“No ma’am. I just wanted to let you know that they told me what happened. I’m sorry you had to experience that.”  
“Thank you, Brice.”

She put away the groceries as Sean came in. He just watched her for a second, then asked, “Do you need help?”  
She put the last item away and said softly, “No. I’m done,” but didn’t turn to face him. Then she said, “Have you ever seen a cat catch a mouse?”  
Confused, Sean could only say, “What?”  
Turning to face him Riley repeated her question. “Have you ever seen a cat catch a mouse? They don’t kill it right away. They bat it around, let it go so it can run and think it’s getting away, then grab it again. They basically play with it to death. Right now, Kevin is the cat, and I’m the damn mouse.”  
Sean didn’t know what to say to that. She was right.

When Norman got home that night, he was told what happened as well. He was furious. Furious that Kevin had gotten so close. Furious that the store didn’t have their security cams on. Furious that he couldn’t keep his friend safe. Riley was in her room for the night, but he could see her light on. Knocking gently, Norman said, “Ri, you still awake?” He heard her say, “Come in,” in a tiny voice. He sat on the edge of her bed. “Heard you had some...excitement today.”  
“Not fun excitement.”  
“No, I know. Ri, I’m sorry. I thought I covered all the bases.”  
“It’s ok, Norm.”  
Changing the subject, Norman said, “Lauren seemed really excited that we were all coming to her wedding. She extended an invite to Sean, since he’s staying here.” Lauren Cohen was marrying her beau, and had invited both Norman and Riley, and now Sean as well.  
“Oh, that was nice of her. I’ll have my cast off soon. And my dress is all ready.”  
“She’s going to have extremely tight security there. And me and Sean will be by your side.”  
Riley just nodded, then burrowed down into her blankets. “‘Night Normie.” He took that as his cue to leave.

Riley was taking baths in Norman’s tub every other day, and Sean would wash and dry her hair a few times a week, and the guys were helping out around the house. Riley finally got her cast off, and things got back to normal for a few weeks, more or less.  
In a way, Sean was sad that her cast came off. He was glad she was all healed up, of course, and all the bumps and bruises from the horrible night had healed. But he missed washing and drying her hair for her. They had great talks when he did it, and he missed it. They still talked, but he had liked touching her.   
He came into the kitchen one day to find her staring forlornly out the window. “Hey pretty girl,” he said. “What’cha looking at?”  
“Nothing. Just looking. Thinking.”  
“Penny for your thoughts?”  
She gave Sean a small smile, but didn’t look away from the window. “I was thinking maybe he’s out there in the woods watching me right now. Maybe he’s got me in his cross hairs. And maybe I wish he’d pull the trigger.”  
Sean turned her around and grabbed her shoulders. “No, dammit! Jesus, Riley, can’t you even see how much we care?”  
“I can. But Sean, I am so tired of this. I never signed on for this level of shit. I never wanted private security or someone waiting in the wings to hurt me! I’m not a movie star with crazed fans, I’m just a woman trying to live her life and stay out of everyone’s way. I’m nobody. I don’t want this.” She started to cry.  
Sean put his arms around her. “I know, baby. They’ll catch him and then this will all be over before you know it. Just hang in there. You aren’t alone. We’re here, too.”  
Riley pulled away and looked at him. “You’ll be gone soon. You won’t be here forever.”   
Sean ran a hand through his hair. She was right. As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t watch over her forever. He couldn’t promise that he would keep her safe. Eventually it would be time for him to leave. Never before was he so angry about having to go home to L.A.

Later that afternoon, Norman was getting ready to go do some interviews. Riley was in the living room dusting, and Norm called Sean into his room and shut the door. “What’s up brother?” Sean asked.  
“Dude, will you fucking ask her out already?”  
“What? What the hell?”  
“I see the way you look at her. You’ve got it bad. Ask her out! I’ll bet she’d say yes.”  
Sean looked at Norman like he was crazy. “How the hell am I supposed to take her out when she has a psychopath threatening to kill her?”  
“Have one of the security guys tail you. That’s why I hired them.”  
“Yeah, that’s really romantic. ‘Hey Riley, how about I take you out? We can paint the town red, and the security can WATCH.’ No way.”  
Norman just rolled his eyes. “It’s not like they’ll be breathing down your necks. After all, I’m pretty sure that President's kids still lost their virginity somehow.”  
And with that, Norman was out of his room, kissing Riley on the top of the head, and driving off.

Sean thought about it. After about an hour, Riley was done with her chores for the day and was relaxing on the couch. Sean looked out the back door to the pool and hot tub. “Hey Riley, want to go for a swim?”

Sean had already dived in and was treading water in the deep end when Riley came out in a long tee shirt. “You can’t swim in that, girl!” Sean laughed.  
“I know. I have a bathing suit on, it’s just...ok when I first came here, I didn’t have a suit. Norman bought this for me the last time he went to Costa Rica. He said I had a cute figure and I should show it off, and I just never got around to getting another suit…” she trailed off.  
“He didn’t get you a dental floss bikini with a string that goes up your butt, did he?” Sean asked, secretly hoping that that was EXACTLY what he had gotten for her.  
“No!” Riley exclaimed. “It’s just a little sexier than I’m used to. And if you laugh, I’ll go right back inside.”  
Sean swam over to the side of the pool closest to her and said, “Ri, I promise I won’t laugh.”  
She pulled the shirt over her head.   
Sean had the decency to put his eyes back in his head before she could see him gawking. It was a black one piece, but it was super sexy, exposing her stomach and sides, and cut high on the leg. He was glad he was in the water. Seemed like his Jimmy Johnson wanted to come out and say hello to the pretty lady.  
She finished pulling off her shirt and stood there. Sean realized she was waiting for him to say something. He smiled and said, “That suit looks great on you, Ri. Not too revealing, but it does show off your figure to your advantage.”  
Riley blushed. “I don’t know. I think it’s too revealing.”  
“Not at all. All of your...lady bits are well covered. You’re showing less than you would in a modest two piece.”  
“You think so? I don’t know, I just feel so….exposed. I know it’s stupid.”  
“You don’t look exposed. You look nice. It’s very attractive on you.”

Riley blushed and waded into the shallow end. Sean watched her and asked, “Why don’t you just dive in?”  
“I can’t swim.”  
“What?” Sean was shocked. “You grew up in California!”  
“Yeah in San Francisco.”  
“What’s that got to do with it?”  
“It’s not always warm like in L.A. It’s too cold to swim. Too foggy. You know the fog is named Karl? It even has a twitter account. Karl the Fog.”  
Sean laughed. “Ok, you’re making that up.”  
“No, I’m not! Look it up! In any case, I can’t swim. I can doggy paddle and tread water and float on my back, but not really swim, so I tend to not go too deep.”

Sean swam over until he could walk to where she was sitting on the stairs and took her hands. “Come on,” he told her, and started walking backwards with her. She paused when the water got chest deep, and he put her hands around his neck. When she got to where she couldn't touch bottom, she tried to pull herself closer, but he told her, “Trust me. I’m not going to let you go under, I promise.” Deeper and deeper they went. Suddenly, Riley said, “We’re at 6 feet. How can you reach the bottom.” Sean smiled and said, “I can’t.”   
Riley panicked, throwing her arms and legs around him, like the little dog in The Grinch cartoon. Sean reached his hand out to the edge of the pool to steady himself. “Riley, calm down. We are perfectly ok. You’re fine.” He pulled back and looked at her. “I will not let anything happen to you. Please relax.”  
Riley did trust him, so she unwrapped herself from him, holding on around the back of his neck again.  
Sean was actually sad she’d unwrapped herself, he’d liked her clinging to him, but he needed her to relax and enjoy herself.  
Within an hour, she was laughing. He was swimming through the pool like a dolphin with Riley hanging on and being pulled along by him. “Swim faster, faster!” she egged him on. “I’m swimming as fast as I can girl!” he laughed.  
It was the most relaxed he’d seen her since before all this crap had started. After a while of splashing around, Riley stretched out on a pool float and Sean watched from behind his sunglasses as she floated around the pool, gently bouncing off the sides. He reasoned with himself that he wasn’t being creepy, she had dozed off, so he was just making sure she didn’t fall off the little inflated mattress, and took a quick picture of her with his phone. Her smooth skin shined in the sun, and her long hair drifted in the water behind her, like a modern day Ophelia.  
Suddenly she said, “Why are you staring at me?”  
Sean laughed. “What makes you think I’m staring at you, I’ve got sunglasses on.”  
“I can feel it.”  
Riley paddled the float over to the ladder and climbed out, manipulating her wrist. Sean walked over and watched her, asking, “Are you hurt?”  
“No, it just gets stiff since….since the incident.”

Sean saw her face get sad. It had been weeks even since the note at the grocery store, but Riley was still afraid. She would be until she saw Kevin’s dead body in a morgue. “Hey,” Sean said cheerfully,” why don’t we go in the hot tub for a bit? It will probably help with your wrist. I’ll grab us a couple of beers, ok?”  
Riley gave him a smile and said, “Yeah, ok. That sounds nice.”  
He went inside to get the beers, and watched her step down into the hot tub. That bathing suit was something else. He wasn’t lying when he told her it wasn’t revealing, but it was damn sexy. Norman was still telling him to just ask her out already, so they could have some fun. He knew that he could keep her safe, but he just couldn’t do it.  
He walked out and put the beers on the deck within reach before climbing into the tub himself. Watching Riley slowly lower herself completely up to her neck and sigh. She was completely oblivious to what she did to him.   
Sean reached for her. “Here, give me your arm.” She did and he slowly and gently massaged it under the water, watching her face for any signs of pain. Instead, she just closed her eyes and sighed, a small smile on her lips. ‘I bet that’s what she looks like after she’s been thoroughly fucked,’ he thought to himself. He turned her wrist over and massaged the underside of it as well for a few minutes, then asked her softly, “Better?”  
“Yeah.”  
Without thinking, he pulled her toward him and turned her so her back was facing him. Confused, she said, “Sean, what are-”  
“Shh. Relax.”  
He wasn’t trying to do anything bad to her. He simply started massaging her shoulders. As soon as he touched her, he could feel how tense she was. “Riley, please relax. You know I won’t hurt you. I’m your friend.” She relaxed some but her shoulders were still tense. That’s when he realized this was tension she’d been carrying around for a while.   
Sean watched her reflection in the glass doors, seeing her eyes slide shut. He was gentle with her, he loved how soft her skin was under his fingertips. All he wanted to do was lean in and kiss her neck, but he knew he couldn’t. He didn’t want to betray her trust.  
“Thanks for not being afraid to touch me,” she said softly.  
“What? Why would I be afraid to touch you?”  
“You know.”  
Sean stilled his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face him. Riley had her head down and her tilted her face up to his. “I really don’t, sweetie.”  
“Because….because….I’m….. ‘tarnished’. I feel….dirty.”  
“Oh sweetie,” Sean wrapped his arms around her. “No, no. You are not tarnished or dirty or anything else. You are perfect, pretty girl. Absolutely perfect.” He dropped a kiss on the top of her head, and started to release her but she hugged him tighter.  
“Could we stay like this for a little longer?”  
“As long as you want.”  
“Forever?” He could feel her smile.  
“That sounds good…”

He held her for about ten minutes, until they heard Norman’s jeep pull up. Sean helped Riley climb out of the hot tub, and she kissed him on the cheek. Sean smiled and asked, “What was that for?”  
“For being just Sean.”  
Norman walked into the house and saw them out on the deck and came out to join them. He said, “Well look what I found!” Turning to Sean, he said, “A drowned rat,” and turning to Riley he said, “And a mermaid!” Norman stepped back and took another look at Riley. “Is that the suit I got you in Costa Rica?”  
“Yep.”  
“Told you it would look great on you!”

Norman had brought home steaks, so they threw them on the grill, and Riley went inside to make a quick salad. “So,” Norman said to Sean. “Spent the day with her in the pool?”  
“Yep.”  
“Ask her out yet?”  
“Nope.”  
“Why not?”  
“Come on Reedus. Her and I get along great. Can’t we just leave it at that?”  
“Why are you so afraid?”  
Sean turned and looked at him. “Afraid of what? Riley?”  
“No. Afraid of committing.”  
Sean just looked out at the water. Norman continued, “Get real, Sean. You act like you’re this big bachelor, banging girls left and right. You’ve ruined the few relationships you’ve been in, but you aren’t a kid anymore. You’re fifty damn years old! Man up and commit! You sleep alone, and you rattle around that big house in L.A. by yourself. You’ve told me more than once how lonely you are, so what’s the problem?”  
Sean shrugged. “Maybe Riley isn’t the right kind of girl for me. Maybe she isn’t what I’m looking for.”  
“What do you want? Another empty headed Playboy centerfold who wasn’t even born yet when Elvis died? Who you have to explain 70’s pop culture references and basic math to?”  
“Back off. You dated a girl closer to your son’s age than your own. Hell you were old enough to be Cecilia's dad. You were 22 years older than her! What were you thinking?”  
Norman held up his hands in surrender. “Yeah, I fucked up. I knew it, and I let it drag on longer than I should have. This isn’t a contest about who is the bigger asshole, ok?”

 

Just then Riley stepped out holding a salad bowl. “Um, is everything ok? It sounded like you guys were arguing.”  
Norman got up to turn over the steaks and said, “Nope. Everything’s fine.” Sean said nothing, just got up and went inside to get another beer. Riley asked Norman, “What the hell is going on?”  
“Nothing sweetie. Just two brothers fighting.”  
“Over what?”  
“Who has the bigger dick.”  
Riley just rolled her eyes and sat down in one of the deck chairs.

Sean stayed inside for a few minutes. He was angry at Norman for calling him on his shit. He was angry at Riley for being so damn attractive. And he was angry at himself for being such a coward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, the San Francisco fog really IS named Karl, and really DOES have a Twitter account, @KarlTheFog. :)


	10. Chapter 10

Another week passed without an incident. Sean noticed Riley was relaxing a little more. She would go out on her own to run errands, always with one of Brice’s men or Brice himself following. They would shadow her in the market, not interacting with her, so if Kevin was watching, they would look just like another customer. Riley knew they were there, hell, she had to meet everyone Brice hired so she didn’t get freaked out thinking someone else was after her, but she felt better. Almost normal again. 

A few nights before Lauren’s wedding, there were sitting around the house when Norman’s phone rang. It was Lauren.  
“Hello, Norman, so sorry to bother you at home.”  
“No bother, what’s going on?”  
“The wedding is in two days, and I’m in a bit of a spot and hope you can help me?”  
“What do you need?”  
“One of my ushers is sick and won’t be attending, would you be able to step in? It’s nothing hard, just ask people if they are a friend of the bride or groom and seat them on whichever side. It’s not hard at all.”  
“Sure thing, sweetie. I’d be happy to help out.”  
“Oh thank you so much! It means you would have to be at the church at one instead of two. Will that be ok? I know they still haven’t caught the bastard that hurt Riley.”  
“It should be fine. I could drive my jeep up and Sean and Riley can go up together. Not a problem, doll.”

He hung up and told them what was going on. “You two would be ok riding together into the wedding right? Lauren is short an usher. She wants me to fill in but I need to be there an hour early. Are you ok with that Riley?”  
Sean and Norman both looked at her. “It’s ok with me as long as we take Sean’s rental car. Herbie is a little crappy for a wedding. He doesn’t like fancy stuff.” Sean had rented a nice Mercedes. He pretended to think about it. “Roll up to the wedding with a pretty girl in my car or with Reedus. Meh, I’ll go with Riley. Reedus is so hairy. But only on one condition, Riley,” Sean said turning to her.  
“I’m almost afraid to ask,” she said, suspiciously.  
“It’s nothing bad. You just have to dance with me at the wedding. We’ll put them all to shame with our two step.”  
“I don’t know how to two step.  
Sean looked horrified. “Well let’s remedy that right now.” He grabbed his iPod and scrolled through until he found what he was looking for. Suddenly out of the speaker, George Strait crooned, “All my exes live in Texas. And Texas is a place I'd dearly love to be…”  
Norman burst out laughing. “This song? For real?”  
Sean gave him a dirty look. “Hush, Reedus. This is a perfect song for two stepping.”  
Sean pulled Riley to her feet. “Sean, I don’t know how to do this. I really don’t.”  
“That’s why I’m teaching you. It’s incredibly simple. Just step like this, see. One and two.”  
He was actually a very good teacher, and within seconds, he and Riley were two stepping across Norman’s living room like old pros.  
Sean stopped in front of Norman as the song ended and dipped Riley. Norman just rolled his eyes and said, “Get a room!”

Later that night, they watched a movie together. When it was over, they all got up to stretch and head to bed, when suddenly they heard a scratching noise on the deck. They all froze. Sean pushed Riley behind him and assumed a fighting stance. Norman turned the TV to the setup for the video cameras and tuned in to the camera on the deck. They saw a bigass raccoon sniffing around, then all three started laughing. Riley ran over to the sliding glass doors, threw open the curtains and yelled, “Get out of here, you filthy beggar!” The raccoon jumped at her outburst and waddled away.

Two days later, Riley was getting ready for Lauren’s wedding in her room, Sean in his, and Norman was about to leave. He knocked on her door. “I’m taking off, Ri. I’ll see you in about an hour.”  
“Wait a sec!” she called and opened her door. “Can you zip up my dress the rest of the way?”   
“Sure. That’s an interesting hairdo by the way,” he said as she turned her back so he could zip her dress. Half of her hair was up in curlers, the other half was unrolled.   
“Shut up. It’s going to look great once I’m done.”  
“Can you get cable with those things?”  
“Leave!”

45 minutes later, Sean knocked at her door. “You ready to go pretty girl? I got a little present for you.”  
“A present?”  
“Yep. For your hair. I remember you saying you were gonna put your hair up and that you always needed bobby pins. So I got you some pretty ones if you need them. They’ve got these little beads on them…”  
Riley stepped out into the hallway and struck Sean speechless. For the first time in his life, green was his favorite color. Riley was wearing a green dress that hugged her curves. Her hair had been curled and was pinned up by one clip with white beads on it. She turned and said, “I can definitely use a couple of bobby pins. Those are so pretty! You ok?” Sean realized he was staring, and dumbly handed her the box with the pins. Using a mirror in the hall, she pinned them into her hair. Turning to Sean, she said, “Do I look ok?”  
“You look….stunning. I mean just absolutely….stunning.”  
Riley’s cheeks turned pink. “Sean!”  
“Sorry, but….damn, pretty girl. I like that dress.”  
“Really? It’s so…..green. I’ve been kind of ambivalent about it since I got it.”  
“It looks good on you sweetie. Incredible.”  
“Sean…” she was blushing again, and it was adorable. “You look really handsome, too.”  
He smiled, “Lauren is gonna be pissed.”  
“Why?”  
“The bride is supposed to be the most beautiful woman at the wedding. You’ve got her beat.”

They walked out, setting the alarm and locking the door behind them. Sean admired her cute little butt as she walked ahead of them to his car. Ever the gentleman, he opened and closed to door for her, and they drove away, with one of Brice’s men tailing them. Even though they wouldn’t need security at the wedding, they would need to be watched going to and from. So one of Brice’s men would have to hang out pretty much all night. It seemed crappy, but they were paid well.

They got to the church, and were seated by Norman who told Riley, “You were right about your hair.” Lauren looked absolutely beautiful in her long white dress, and the ceremony was lovely. Riley got teary, and Sean gave her his hanky to dry her eyes. Then they were off to the reception, and that was crazy and fun. 

The DJ played excellent music, the food was fantastic, and there was tons of champagne and cake. And there was Lisa. She was Lauren’s cousin, and she and Normie seemed to be flirting up a storm. He came back to the table to check in on her and Sean, and Riley couldn’t resist. “So you and Lisa seem to be getting friendly,” she smiled.  
Norman turned a little pink and said, “Yeah, she’s pretty.”  
“Am I gonna need earplugs tonight?”  
“Riley! You know I don’t bring girls to the house.”  
“Do you have condoms?”  
“RILEY!”  
“Well do you?”  
“Yes, okay? I do.”  
“Good, have fun tonight.”  
“What makes you think I’m going to do anything?”  
She just gave him a look.  
“Ok, ok, if she brings it up, I wouldn’t mind…” he wandered off to find Lisa.  
Sean turned to her. “He is so getting laid tonight!”

Riley excused herself to the ladies room, and Norman came back to the table to talk to Sean.  
“Riley looks really pretty tonight, don’t you think?” Norman asked Sean.  
“Pretty doesn’t cover it, and yes she does. I told her that she did.”  
“Well, it looks like I’m going back to the hotel with Lisa. You two will have the house to yourselves. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”  
“Shut up, you big lush.”  
Just then Riley came back and Norman told her he was leaving with Lisa. “Good for you!” she told him. “You need to get laid.”  
A nice slow song came on, and Sean stood, held out his hand, and asked Riley, “May I have this dance?” Riley smiled, and said, “Um, ok. I don’t think this is a two stepping song.”  
As Sean led her to the dance floor, he told her, “It’s not. You’ll be fine.” He threaded her hands around his neck, put his arms around her waist, and held her close. “See?” he murmured softly. “You’re doing just fine.” The DJ played two more slow songs after that, and she and Sean continued dancing. She was so small in his arms. She felt one of his big hands splayed open on her back, making her feel warm. The song ended, and she smiled up at him. “That was fun.”  
“Yes it was.” They sat down at the table, and she kicked off her heels. Without a word, he picked up one of her feet and started rubbing it. She let out a soft sigh and slumped down in her seat, a glass of champagne in her hand. “Pretty girl, how many of those have you had?” She had felt a wee bit wobbly when they were dancing.  
“Um...a few,” she giggled.  
“Ok, that’s enough champagne for you missy,” he said, taking the champagne from her and pouring her a glass of water from the carafe on the table. “Drink some water.”  
“Party pooper,” she pouted as she drank some water.  
“You’ll thank me tomorrow. I want you to drink at least another glass of water before we leave.”  
“Gonna be peeing all night,” she grumbled.

Another glass of water and a few bathroom trips later, Riley had just a mild buzz. She’d probably sober up completely on the ride home. “Ready to head home, pretty girl?”  
“Yeah, looks like the party is winding down.”  
Lauren rushed over. “We’re heading back to our hotel, we fly to Jamaica tomorrow. I just wanted to say goodbye. Do you know where Norman is?”  
Sean and Riley looked at each other, and he told Lauren, “Try Lisa’s room.”  
Lauren looked confused, then her eyes got big and she smiled. “I KNEW IT!” she exclaimed. I thought Norman was giving her eyes!”  
“By now he’s given her a lot more than that…” Sean smirked.  
Lauren laughed, hugged them, and was gone.

Riley put her heels back on and Sean walked her out, giving his ticket to the valet. It was cold, and Riley shivered, so Sean took off his coat and put it over her shoulders. “Such a gentleman,” she smiled up at him. The drive home was short, they waved to Brice and walked inside.

As soon as they got in the door, Riley kicked off her shoes again, and handed Sean his coat. “Thanks for...being you,” she said, walking into her room and shutting the door. Sean let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding and headed for his own room. He took off everything but his pants, standing and looking out his window. Why did Riley have to be so damn adorable? He had it bad for her and he knew it. He always had, ever since Norman introduced them back when she was bartending. 

In her own room, Riley was wrestling with her dress. The zipper was in the back, and no matter how she contorted herself, she just could not reach it. There had been a wonderful time in fashion where they had put zippers in the side seams of dresses, why did that stop? Great, she was going to have to ask Sean to unzip it. It was bad enough that she had started crushing on him weeks ago. She heaved a sigh and headed down the hall.

Sean’s door was shut, but she could see light coming from underneath. She knocked and said, “Sean? I need your help for a second.”  
Without thinking twice he said, “Come on in,” as he closed his curtains.  
Riley had seen him in swimming trunks already, but seeing him in his dress pants and nothing else was distracting, to say the least. She just stood there looking at him. He took a step toward her. “Ri? You ok?”  
She averted her eyes from his washboard abs. “Um, yeah. I need…..I can’t unzip my dress. Norman zipped it up for me, but I can’t reach it to unzip it.”  
‘Holy shit,’ Sean thought, ‘I get to unzip her dress…. that’s sexy.’ Out loud, he feigned nonchalance. “Sure thing. Come here.”

Walking over to him, her heart was thumping so loudly, she was sure he could hear it.. She approached him and turned around. He gently brushed a few stray strands of hair away from her neck, making her shiver. He leaned down and whispered in her ear, “You ok, Riley-girl?” All she could do was nod. He ran his hands between her shoulder blades to where the zipper was, and unzipped it slowly. When she’d had Norman zip it that morning, she’d had it about halfway up. But Sean slowly unzipped it all the way down, past her strapless bra, and down past the waistband of her thong underwear….he could totally see her ass cheeks. Riley was caught somewhere between arousal and embarrassment. She felt more exposed than she had in her bathing suit.

Sean watched the zipper as he slid it down, revealing her black bra strap. He did it slowly so Riley could tell him to stop when she wanted to, but she never did. He continued unzipping, as the fabric opened itself up, down past her waist, he saw the waistband of her panties, and continued unzipping. The zipper ended halfway down her ass, and he saw she was wearing black thong underwear. Dear lord. Starting at the waistband of her panties, he gently ran his fingers up her back, and he heard her gently sigh. He ran his fingers all the way up the back of her neck, and fingered the beaded hair clip. He said softly, “This has got to go, pretty girl,” and gently took it out. Her hair tumbled down, curled and tangled and wild, and he turned her around to face him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The smut begins next chapter!


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here comes the smut, you have been warned!

Riley’s face was flushed, her eyes wide, lips slightly parted, breathing in short breaths. She raised her hand and placed it flat against his chest. Sean thought she was going to push him away, but instead, she ran her hand down his chest and over those washboard abs she’d wanted to touch for awhile. She stopped at his belt and dropped her hand and her eyes. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.  
“For what?”  
“I shouldn’t touch you like that. I didn’t even ask.”  
“Neither did I. Should I have not touched you? Please tell me if I upset you.”  
Riley took a few steps back and slouched against the dresser. She felt her cheeks burn as she said, “No….I liked it.” Sean smiled. “So did I.”  
He stepped closer to her, her head was down and he used his finger to tilt her chin up. “Hey, it’s ok. There’s nothing wrong with liking it when someone touches you. You know that right?”  
Riley smiled and nodded. He leaned down, intending to give her a peck on the lips and step back. He wanted her, he wanted her bad, but he didn’t want to frighten her after all she’d been through. He gently pressed his lips to hers, and Riley snaked her arms around his neck, keeping him there. He was pleasantly surprised, more so when he felt her lips part. He parted his as well.  
When their tongues touched, it was electric. They pulled away briefly, and Sean asked, “Is this okay, sweetheart?”   
“Yeah.”  
They kissed again, and Riley put her hands on Sean’s chest again. She ran them horizontally along his abs, and he jerked away. Riley opened her mouth to apologize and Sean held up a hand to stop her. “It’s ok,” he smiled, “I’m just a little ticklish.”  
Riley pulled him to her by the waistband of his pants. He noticed she was barefoot and standing on her toes. He reached down and grabbed her behind her thighs, hoisting her up on the dresser. “Don’t want those beautiful legs to get tired.”  
“You think my legs are beautiful?”  
“I think all of you is beautiful. Dammit Ri, haven’t you figured out that I’m crazy for you?”  
It had never even occurred to Riley that Sean might like her. She shook her head. Sean said, “Well I would love to convince you…” and started kissing her again. Riley wrapped her legs around him, pulling him up against her.  
Sean reached back, pulling open her dress and sliding it down her arms. He pulled back and looked at her. “Is this ok, Riley? You can stop me whenever you want, you know that right?”  
“I don’t want to stop tonight,” she told him breathlessly, and she reached back with one hand and unhooked her strapless bra. It clung to her breasts, and with her other hand, she pulled it off completely. Sean looked at her breasts with their hard pink nipples and placed his hands on them gently. He could see a shadow of the bite marks Kevin had put there, they hadn’t disappeared yet. He leaned his head down and kissed the marks, two on each breast before running his tongue gently over the nipples, making Riley’s breath catch in her throat.  
Sean stood and looked at her. “You ok?”  
“Yes, quit asking me that. I know you’ll stop if I need you to.” Riley hopped down from the dresser and pushed the dress down over her hips and to the floor. She then reached for Sean and undid his belt. Sean dipped his head to kiss her, while leading her over to the bed. Suddenly he stopped and said, “Shit.”  
“What?”  
“I don’t have any protection.”  
“Hold on,” Riley said and left the room. She came back later with a condom, and Sean said, “Good to see you’re prepared.”  
“I’m not. These are from Norman’s stash,” she giggled.

Sean took it from her hand and placed it on the bedside table. He approached her again, and knelt in front of her, sliding her panties off. He could see ghosts of marks from that bastard. Starting at her ankles, he slowly ran his hands up her legs. He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her to stand in between his legs and ran his fingertips across her nipples, making them instantly harden. He looked up at Riley, and she told him, “If you ask me if something is ok one more time, I will punch you in the face!” He chuckled, and said, “Fair enough.” Then he leaned forward and took one of her nipples into his mouth while his hand fondled the other one. He heard her gasp slightly, and she ran her fingers through his hair, keeping him in place. He was on the right track.   
Riley couldn’t even remember the last time she’d had a guy engage in foreplay. Most of the time, she was with boyfriends who seemed to think that once they got her in the sack it was all about them. She’d never even had a guy get her off, but after her last sexual encounter, anything would be better.

Sean switched nipples and heard Riley let out a soft moan. With his free hand, he gently nudged her legs apart. He slide his hand up the inside of her thigh until it was up against her pussy. He felt her stiffen a little bit, then relax. He cupped her sex gently, and could feel her starting to get wet. Gently, he slowly stroked along her opening with one finger.   
Riley’s legs wobbled and she grabbed onto his shoulders. “RIley-girl, open your eyes, and look at me,” he whispered. She opened her eyes and looked down at him sitting in front of her. He pulled his fingers away, smiling at her small moan. “Lay down before your knees give out, baby. I want you to enjoy this, not fall and hit your head.”

She climbed onto the bed and laid on her back, and Sean climbed over her, holding his weight off of her on his arms. He leaned down and gently kissed her on the lips. “You really are gorgeous he told her.”  
“So are you,” she told him. “Your body is absolutely beautiful.” Riley ran her arms over his shoulders and down his chest. Sean just smiled at her as he slid down her body.   
“Wh-what are you doing?” Riley asked him suddenly, looking down.  
Sean looked up at her. “What do you think? I was about to have a taste of this luscious looking pussy.”  
“You don’t have to. I mean….you know.”  
“Riley please don’t tell me a guy has never gone down on you.”  
“No, they have. Just….not in a long time. And the last guy told me I was gross,” she said, turning pink with shame.

Quick as a flash, Sean swiped his tongue along her folds before she could say or do anything. She let out a gasp, and he smacked his lips. Looking at her, he told her, “Nope, not gross. Pretty goddamn tasty if you ask me.” Before Riley could say anything else, he had his tongue buried in her, and she let out a long moan. Sean couldn’t believe someone would think that she was “gross”. What an asshole. She tasted like fucking honey.

He wrapped his arms around her thighs and gently spread her open with his fingers, looking at her all glistening and pink, and all his. He dove back in. It didn’t take long at all for Riley, and Sean was surprised. She obviously needed this bad. He tightened his grip around her legs. She suddenly started whispering, “Don’t stop, don’t stop, don’t stop…” He gently sucked her swollen bud into his mouth with a soft fluttering motion, and Riley came. She came HARD.

Sean was glad he had such a good grip on her, she was like a bucking bronco at a rodeo. First she gave this loud gasp, then her whole body started to shake, and she began to cry out.

“Oh...ohhhhh...OHHHH! Oh god Sean! SEAN! OH FUCK YES!!!” Then just about the time when her orgasm started to die down, he heard her beg, “More, harder, please!” Well, since she did say please…  
He sucked her clit harder, and she came yet again, holding onto his hair and grinding against his face, and dribbling cum onto the sheets below her. Sean did his best to lick and swallow as much of her as he could, she tasted so damn sweet. All the while she was screaming for him, for god, for more. Sean was glad they lived out in the country, and briefly wondered if the security detail could hear them, then decided he didn’t give a shit.  
Finally, her bucking died down to an occasional tremor, and Sean gently lessened his suction on her. He placed several gentle open mouthed kisses all over her little hot box, now turning red. He gave it a few gentle licks, knowing she was likely very sensitive, and then slowly kissed his way back up her body.  
“Wow!” she told him. “That’s never happened before!”  
Sean was confused. “What hasn’t?”  
“I came!”  
“Yeah, a couple of times, from what I could tell,” he smoothed her hair back from her face when it finally dawned on him. “Wait a minute. Are you telling me no guy has licked your pussy until you came?”  
“No guy has done anything until I came.”  
“Riley, have you EVER had an orgasm?”  
“Well, I have by myself. Like with a vibrator or my fingers, but not with somebody else….some girls don’t have them, you know,” she said, a bit defensively.   
Sean just shook his head. Riley just looked away, but he wouldn’t have it. “No you don’t, look at me.” Riley finally turned her eyes back to his. Sean told her, “I have a feeling you were dating and sleeping with a bunch of selfish bastards. Some girls don’t have orgasms ever, that’s true. But obviously you are not only capable of cumming, but cumming multiple times. Girls are a little bit like cars: you have to be a little more interested in seeing how they handle before seeing how fast they can get from zero to sixty.”  
“I can’t believe you just compared me to a car.”  
Sean chuckled, “I’m trying here, ok? Point is, sounds like you were with guys who were getting off when you were just getting warmed up. That’s not cool. Being able to help a girl cum, by touching her….” he ran a hand over one of her nipples. “...by kissing her…” he pressed a soft kiss to her lips. “...using your tongue…” he slid his into her mouth for a long kiss. “...is the best thing ever. Hearing you call out my name like you were….ain’t nothing like that.”  
Riley started giggling. Sean looked at her and asked, “What?”  
“I wonder if our security guys could hear me.”  
“People in Guam could probably hear you!”  
Riley clapped a hand over her mouth. “Was I really that loud?”  
“Nah. Let’s see if we can make you louder,” he said with a wicked smile.


	12. Chapter 12

Sean kissed Riley again, her lips were so soft, and grabbed the condom off the nightstand, putting it on the pillow. He meant what he said about getting her warmed up, any girl deserved that much, what the hell was wrong with guys? Yeah, a quickie was always good and fun, but getting a girl off was amazing. If these guys had any sense, they’d know they were missing out on the way it felt to be inside a girl when she’s cumming: how she flutters, how she tightens, how she gets even wetter. Guys were idiots.

He slid his hand down between their bodies, and gently skated his fingers along her slit. Good, she was still nice and wet. Pulling away from kissing her, he gently slid a finger inside her. Her eyes were closed, she seemed to be enjoying it. Until tears started streaming out of the corners of her closed lids.   
“Riley? Riley! Baby, what’s wrong?” Sean pulled his finger out of her immediately. Had he hurt her?  
“I’m sorry,” Riley said softly. “I know it’s horrible and disgusting and I’m so sorry!”  
“What?” Sean was beyond confused. “Riley-girl, what are you going on about? Open your eyes and look at me.”  
Riley shook her head.  
“Open your eyes right NOW, missy! I’m not playing!” He used his angry voice, but when Riley opened her eyes, his face was full of concern. “That’s better,” he said, stroking her cheek. “Now tell me what’s going on. Did I hurt you?”  
Riley shook her head ‘no’.  
“Then what? Please talk to me.”  
Riley took a breath. “He….he used a screwdriver on me.”  
Sean pressed his forehead against hers and closed his eyes. “I know, baby. I can’t even imagine how horrible that was.”  
“They had to stitch me.”  
“I remember.”  
“The doctor….she said that you wouldn’t be able to feel a scar, but I know you can. I know it! And I know it’s disgusting!” she started to cry again.  
“Shh….shhh...sweetheart, listen to me. I can’t feel any scar at all. Nothing. I swear to you I can’t.”  
“Really?” she looked at him suspiciously.  
Instead of answering, he grabbed her hand, and inserted one of her own fingers into herself, along with his. It was strangely erotic, and she could tell that Sean felt it, too.  
His face close to hers, he whispered, “Do you feel anything wrong, pretty girl? Because I sure as hell don’t.” She shook her head ‘no’ again. “Good,” he told her, then pulled her finger out and up to his lips, where he sucked it into his mouth, never breaking eye contact with her. “You’re perfect, pretty girl. Always have been, always will be.” He reached down between them and slowly slid his finger back in, gently pumping it in and out.  
Riley wiped her tears away, put hers arms around Sean’s neck, and concentrated on just feeling what he was doing. It was just a finger, but it felt so good. She let out a soft moan, and let her eyes slide shut. Sean smiled, good. She was enjoying what he was doing. He whispered in her ear, “I’m going to put in another finger, ok?”  
“Ok.”  
He slid in a second finger, and felt her clench around him. Oh man, he knew that when he was inside her it was going to be incredible. “You’re so tight, Riley. How are you so damn tight?”  
She didn’t answer because she couldn’t. It was just his fingers, but they felt amazing. It had been so long for her.  
Sean watched as she started to push back against his fingers, she probably didn’t even realize she was doing it. He gently withdrew his fingers, watching Riley open her eyes and say, “No…”  
“Easy pretty girl,” he told her, licking her off his fingers. “That was just an appetizer. Time for the main course. You ready?” he picked up the condom.  
“Yeah.”

Riley had felt his hard on against her hip, but hadn’t actually seen him yet. He stood to take off his boxer briefs, and Riley’s eyes went wide.  
“Wow, you’re really….big,” she told him.  
He smiled as he put the condom on. “You gonna be ok, Riley-girl?”  
“I….I think so. Just go slow, ok?”  
“Of course, sweetheart.”

He climbed back onto the bed and laid between her open legs, holding his weight off of her on his elbows, making his biceps bulge. Riley ran her hands up them to his shoulders. Sean lined himself up with her opening, and watched her face as he slid himself into her. He was so slow it was almost unbearable. “Shit Sean, you’re really big,” she breathed. He was much bigger than the guys she had been with, and it had been a while anyway. “And you’re really tight,” he responded. She was so tight, she was almost pushing him out. Riley took a deep breath, and pushed herself on his huge cock, sinking him deeper. Sean buried his face in her neck and mumbled out, “Oh fuck….”  
She was like he’d imagined, only better. She was tighter, softer, wetter than he’d even thought possible. Face in her neck, he could smell her perfume, it was like candy. He pulled back, looking at her, telling her, “I gotta move, babygirl. That ok?”  
“Yeah, please…”

He slid out and back in, watching her face. The first few times, she looked uncomfortable, adjusting to his size. Then suddenly, her whole face changed, and she breathed out softly, “Oh, Sean.”  
“That’s it, Riley, Just relax and feel how good it is.”  
He was holding back slightly with her, not bottoming out just yet, but gently pushing in and out of her, enjoying the little moans she was making.  
“You and me, Riley,” he whispered. “We waited too long to do this, sweetheart.”  
“I know, I’m so sorry.”  
“Shh. No sorry allowed. We’re here now.”

 

Sean rolled them over so Riley was on top. She stayed pressed against his chest, her eyes wide. “Sit up, babygirl. Sit up and ride me so I can look at that beautiful body.”  
Riley hesitated, and he told her, “Come on, Riley. Let me see you.”  
Slowly she sat upright, sinking fully onto his cock, eliciting groans from both of them. She took a few seconds to adjust, then started rocking on him. He slid his hands up her body to her creamy breasts, and gently tweaked her nipples, making her gasp and jerk. “Do that again, please,” she begged. Sean did it over and over again, watching her shiver as she rode him harder and harder.  
“God Sean, it feels so good…”  
Sean licked his thumb, then started stroking it on her clit, while his other hand kept up the assault on her nipples. She began to move faster and grind harder on him, her hands on his chest for leverage. Looking down at him, he had a little smile on his face, and his eyes were darting everywhere at once: her nipples, her clit, her face.  
“Fuck, Riley. You feel so good. You look so beautiful.”  
He began thrusting upward into her, removing his hand from her nipples to place on her hip, keeping himself buried in her. She used her thighs to lift and then slam herself down on his cock. “Fuck yes, Riley! You feel so fucking good!”  
He looked up at her face, and she seemed to be fighting within herself. She wanted to let go, but was afraid. “Come on, sweet girl,” he said, as she looked down at him. “Let go for me. Let me feel you cum on my cock. Show me I made you feel good.”  
She slammed herself down a few more times, and her eyes went wide. “Oh Sean! I….I…”  
He could feel her flutter and tighten around him. He wouldn’t be able to hold back much longer. “Cum for me, girl, RIGHT NOW!”  
He thrust up into her, and Riley lost it. Her first real orgasm from sex. Good thing Sean had a good grip on her hips, she was thrashing like crazy, and swearing like a sailor. “FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK YES! SEAN!!! Oh god, please don’t stop, don’t you fucking dare!”  
Sean couldn’t have stopped if she’d put a gun to his head. He was bucking up into her, calling her name over and over. “RILEY! FUCK YES GIRL! How are you so fucking tight? You feel so good, babygirl!”  
Neither was sure where one ended and the other began. Finally, their yelling died down into moans, whimpers, and twitches, and Riley all but collapsed on top of Sean. He gently stroked the soft skin of her back. He gently slid out of her, sliding off the condom, and dropping it in the wastebasket near the bed, without disturbing the beautiful girl on top of him. “You ok, Riley?” From somewhere in the vicinity of his neck, she mumbled, “Uh huh.” She slid off of Sean to the side, and he wrapped his arms around her.  
“You are something else, Riley. That was fucking amazing.”  
“I’ll say,” she mumbled sleepily.  
“Get some rest, angel. We’ll talk more in the morning.”  
She didn’t answer, and when he looked down, he saw she was already sound asleep. He turned off the lamp and was soon asleep himself.


	13. Chapter 13

Norman drove home the morning after the wedding with a smile on his face and a soreness in his body. Lauren’s cousin, Lisa, had given him a hell of a workout. God damn that girl was amazing. Just thinking of the way she’d screamed, “Fuck me harder, Norman” in that accent was enough to make his dick twitch in his pants. He was glad to know the damn thing still worked, Lisa had been insatiable. They had snuck out of the wedding early, and gone at it in every position imaginable, and a few he’d never tried, until about 4 a.m. She was going to be moving to Atlanta soon, she was awaiting a work Visa and was going to be Lauren’s personal assistant. Norman pondered the possibility of having a relationship with her. After all, she would know all about the crazy scheduling, and if there was a con that Lauren was at as well, he would still get to see Lisa, too. He knew if he was thinking like this, he must really like her. 

He waved to the security detail, pulled into the driveway, and let himself in, resetting the alarm. The house was quiet, even though it was 10. Riley was usually up early, but it was her day off. He decided to just pop his head in her room and check on her. He knocked softly, and when there was no answer, he opened her door and looked around. She wasn’t there. And her bed hadn’t been slept in. He felt panic rising up in him. She wasn’t in the bathroom or anywhere else. Norman ran down the hall to Sean’s room, yelling, “Sean! Riley’s gone! Her bed is empty!” Yanking open the bedroom door, he yelled, “She’s-” and stopped short. His outburst had woken up Sean...and Riley. She was sitting up in the bed next to Sean, with the sheet pulled up over her breasts, her face turning pink.  
Norman wasn’t sure if he should laugh or cheer. He was unbelievably happy at this turn of events. Sean finally made a move!

Norman finally said, “Sean, can I speak to you privately for a moment?”  
“Yeah, let me put on some pants.”  
Riley said, “I’d leave, but I’m kind of naked…”  
Norman smiled at her. “No worries, sweetie.”

Norman went out on the back deck and Sean came out minutes later in a pair of pajama pants. Norman turned around and smiled. “You sly dog! I mean, it would have been nice if you’d asked her out first, but hey, there’s time for that.”  
Sean just looked out at the forest and didn’t say anything.  
“Dude,” Norman started. “Don’t you dare. Not to her. Don’t you fucking dare.”  
“Don’t what?” Sean muttered.  
“Don’t hurt her. For fuck’s sake, you chased this girl for a year! Why can’t you take a chance? I mean….was the sex really bad or something?”  
“No! That shit was amazing.”  
“Then try. For both of your sakes. For once in your life, try to commit. Give it a shot. You like Riley, you always have. Just give it a chance. Don’t get scared and run away. Just try.”  
Sean let out a deep breath. He really did like her. A lot. And the sex really was beyond amazing. “I’ll try.”

Norman headed back inside. Riley was pacing in the hallway in her bathrobe. “Hey boss man, did you have a nice night?” she asked nervously.  
“About as nice as yours,” he smiled.  
“Um….am I fired?”  
“What? Why would you be fired?”  
“Because you hired me to clean your house and cook your meals, not bang your friends.”  
“Come here, sit down,” he led her into the living room. They looked out the window just in time to see Sean doff his sleep pants and jump into the pool naked.   
“Riley, he’s been after you for a year. And, contrary to popular belief, I think you may have liked him just as long. I have been pushing him since he got here to ask you out. It seems like he skipped right to the good part, but hey, whatever works.”  
He was right. Riley thought maybe she and Sean could back up a bit and do the whole dating thing….and fuck. Because damn if she wasn’t sore in the best way.  
“If he’s still interested.”  
“He is.”

Riley went to take a shower and Norman brought Sean out a towel. “NOW will you ask her out?”  
“Yes, I’m going to.”  
The night passed quietly. Sean didn’t ask Riley out, which bothered Norman, but he decided to give him a few days. But a few days later, Riley asked him out. “Hey Sean?”  
“Yeah sweetie?” he was reading the paper only partly paying attention to her.  
“Would you like to go out to dinner with me? My treat. There’s a really nice place in Atlanta. One of those super fancy restaurants with a valet and a coat check, or we can go someplace not too fancy if you want.”  
Sean looked at her adorable little face. “Can you afford it? I don't want you to spend all your money.”  
“Yes. Norman pays me pretty good, and I live here rent free, and I don’t have many expenses except for Herbie.”  
“I would love to go to a fancy restaurant in Atlanta with you on one condition. MY treat.”  
“Really? Can we take your car too? Herbie doesn’t like fancy places.”  
“Of course. I get out of filming early on Thursday, what do you say 7:00?”  
“Perfect!”  
She wandered off to start her day, and Sean hid back behind his paper.

On Wednesday he asked her if she had made reservations. She let him know that she had called, but was told since it wasn’t a weekend or a holiday and they weren’t a large party, they weren’t necessary. Riley felt something was off, but she pushed it away. It wasn’t that he wasn’t being affectionate, he was, but he was as affectionate as he had always been. At an arm's length away. But Riley just reminded herself that this was new for both of them.

Thursday she went to a little boutique in town and got a dress, with one of Brice’s men tailing her, as always. After the incident at the store with the note, she was beginning to think Kevin was long gone, maybe even dead if she was lucky. She found a little black cocktail dress and shoes, perfect for dinner. She wanted to be sure she looked nice for Sean.

Thursday night came and Riley made every effort to look her best. Sean called her cell at 6:00. “Hey, I just wanted to give you a head’s up, I might be about 10 minutes late, ok?”  
“Sure, no problem. If you get stuck there later, just keep me posted, ok?”  
“Ok. See you soon.”

She curled her hair and pulled back the sides with the beaded bobby pins Sean had given her before Lauren’s wedding. She did her makeup, and used some of her best perfume. She walked out of her bedroom just before 7, and Norman gave a low whistle. “Wow, Riley. You look amazing!”  
“Really? You don’t think it’s too much?” she said, suddenly nervous.  
“Not at all, absolutely perfect. Where the hell is Sean?”  
“Oh he called and said he might be about 10 minutes late. They were just doing table reads today, nothing physical. He said he’d come home, change real quick, and then we could go.” Riley said as she sat on the couch.

7:10

7:20

7:30

Sean was 20 minutes late. No phone call. Riley double checked her phone. She tried calling him, but after several rings, it went to voicemail. “Hi Sean, it’s Riley. I’m at the house waiting, and it’s already 7:30. Is everything ok? Please give me a call.” She hung up and texted the same thing.  
Norman spoke up. “Maybe he just got caught in some traffic, or he had to make a quick stop for gas or something.”  
“Yeah…” But Riley had a feeling he wasn’t coming.

7:40

7:50

8:00

Norman ducked into his bedroom and called Sean and got voicemail as well, so he left a voice message and a text. “Dude, where the fuck are you? You’re an hour late, and Riley is waiting on you all dressed up! Call or text us!”

8:10

8:20

8:30

Norman was looking at Riley, who was looking at the floor. Sean wasn’t coming, for some reason. She’d bought a new dress and shoes, and had taken time to make herself look nice. And then he just didn’t show.  
Riley stood and said, “I think it’s fairly obvious he’s not coming. I think I’m just gonna take off my makeup and go to bed.”  
“Riley, I’m sure there’s a reason he’s late.”  
“Yeah, well, he can give me his reason tomorrow. I’ve had enough excitement for one night, thanks.”

Heading to her bedroom, she took off her dress and shoes, and pulled the beaded bobby pins out of her hair. She put on her pajamas and headed into the bathroom, where she could blame her tears on the eye makeup remover.

Norman was furious. Where the fuck was Sean. He didn’t think for even one minute that he was hurt, but how could he just not show? That girl waited an hour and a half for him. She’d left the room with nothing but shame and embarrassment on her face, like she thought she wasn’t good enough.

At about 11 p.m., with still no word from Sean, Norman had no choice but to go to bed.

At 1:30 in the morning, Norman was woken up by his cell phone ringing. Without even looking at it, he answered it, murmuring, “Hello?”  
“NAHMANNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!”  
Norman shot straight up in bed. “Sean?”  
“Hey Normie! I love you so much, buddy!”  
Norman ran a hand over his face. “Are you drunk?”  
“I am PISS DRUNK!” Sean started laughing uncontrollably.  
“What the fuck is wrong with you? You were supposed to take Riley out to dinner tonight. We both called and texted you and you were out getting plastered?”  
Sean ignored what he said, and slurred, “I need a ride home. Some girl offered me one, but she keeps grabbing my junk. Can you and Riley come get me? She needs to drive my car. Y’all need some fucking cabs in Senoia!”  
Norman sighed. Riley was not going to like this. The security detail would follow, but they couldn’t help as it would blow their cover. They never knew when or if Kevin was watching. “Alright brother, where are you?”  
“Bailey’s.”  
“We’ll be there in 15 minutes.”

He ended the call and walked down the hall to Riley’s room. She answered the knock in her jammies, hair rumpled, and looking adorable. “What’s going on?”  
“Sean needs us-”  
“Oh my god! Is he ok? Was there an accident?”  
Norman held up a hand to stop her. “He’s fine. He’s at Bailey’s and too drunk to drive. We need to go get him.”  
“I’m sorry, ‘we’? No I fucking don’t.”  
“Riley, you need to drive his Mercedes back.”  
“No I don’t.”  
“Come on, Ri. He drove Herbie for you. If nothing else, do it as a favor for me.”  
Riley heaved a sigh. “Fine, just let me throw some clothes on.”

They pulled into Bailey’s almost exactly 15 minutes later. Sean was in the parking lot with some bleached blonde. Ugh.   
When Riley had worked at the bar she had seen women like her. They usually drove in from Atlanta, hanging out at the bar trying to see if they could find Norman, like he was some sort of real-life “Where’s Waldo” or something. The locals saw him all the time, to them he was just another neighbor going about his day. To hoes like this, he was the Holy fucking Grail. But they were always so trashy. They’d have better luck without 40 pounds of makeup, bleached, teased hair, fake tits, and smelling like they bathed in Designer Imposter cologne. He didn’t mind girls who wore makeup, but he didn’t like girls who put it on with a paint roller.

They pulled up and Sean told the girl, “That’s my ride!”  
“Aw come on, baby. I could have taken you home. Or you could come home with me,” she purred.   
Norman and Riley both got out, and Norman told her, “He didn’t let you drive him home because I don’t like people to know where I live.”  
The girl saw him and lost all interest in Sean, practically shoving him away. “Oh my god, you’re Norman Reedus! Oh I love you so much! Oh please can’t I come over? You can blindfold me so I don’t see where you live,” she said seductively. Riley rolled her eyes and made her way over to Sean. Even through his alcohol haze, he could see she was not happy.  
Norman told the tramp, “No, sorry.”  
“Oh please? Or even better, you can come to my place back in Atlanta! I’ll do both of you! And she,” she said waving dismissively at Riley, “can go back to wherever she came from.”  
Riley reached into Sean’s pants pocket and pulled out his keys, then got him into Norman’s Jeep and helped him with his seat belt.  
“Not gonna happen, lady,” Norman told her. “Sorry, but you’re wasting your time, your breath..”  
Riley interjected, “...and about 30 pounds of Designer Imposter cologne.”  
The girl ran to her car, screaming, “I’ll follow you! I’ll see where you live! I’ll tell everyone!”  
Norman climbed into the Jeep and pulled out, and Riley pulled out behind him in the Mercedes. Slutty girl tried to pull out after them, but the security detail blocked her way, sitting in their car calmly while she got out of her car and screamed at them.

They got to the house, and parked both the Jeep and Mercedes in the garage in case slutty girl decided to cruise the back roads to look for them. There were no windows in the garage, and Norman closed the doors tightly, after giving a heads up to the security detail. As they helped Sean in the house, Norman said, “Wow, that girl was desperate. Pretty much drops Sean as soon as I show up, then offers to fuck us both,” he shook his head. “I’d never sleep with a girl like that.”  
“She’s a starfucker,” Riley said. “She wants to fuck someone famous, and the more famous the better. Your star outshines his at the moment,” she said, helping Norman hoist Sean into the bed. “I’m going back to sleep, boss.”  
“Alright, sweetie.”

Norman was helping Sean get out of his clothes for bed, when Sean finally spoke. “Riley was wearing her angry face.”  
“Can you blame her? What the fuck is wrong with you?”  
“I dunno….”

The next morning, Norman woke Sean before Riley got up. He had only a mild headache, boy could hold his liquor, that’s for sure.  
“So what the fuck happened last night?”  
“Nothing. I mean that girl kept grabbing my junk, but we didn’t do anything. Didn’t even kiss.”  
“That’s not what I mean and you know it. Riley put a lot of effort into looking nice for you, and she waited for you until 8:30. You didn’t even call. What the hell?”  
“I don’t know. I thought I’d stop for a quick drink,” he muttered. “I watched the clock and it got later and later, and I just couldn’t get myself to leave. I saw when you guys called and texted. This is your fault anyway, Norman!”  
“How the hell is this my fault?”  
“Because I tried to tell you I wasn’t good enough and you kept trying to push us together.”  
“I tried to get you to take her out on a date, not fuck her and abandon her. Not treat her like shit.”  
“What’s done is done,” Sean mumbled miserably.  
“GODAMMIT SEAN!” Norman exploded. “Why won’t you let yourself be happy?”  
Sean had no answer, and then he said, “I’ll fix it. I promise. If she still wants me, that is.”


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The sentence fragments in between asterisks (*) are thoughts.

Riley woke up, dressed in her favorite sweatpants, an old shirt of Norman’s, and her sneakers, and shuffled into the kitchen to make some coffee. Surprised to see Norman sitting at the table, she double checked the time. He was already drinking his coffee, thank heaven for K cups, even he couldn’t screw that up. “Morning sweetie,” he said. She looked at him but didn’t say anything. “Sean will be out in a minute. He wants to talk to you.”  
“I don’t want to talk to him.”  
“Come on, Riley, give him a chance to explain.”

Before Riley could argue, Sean came out. “Hey, Riley.” Norman looked at them then picked up his coffee cup, saying, “I think I’ll take this outside…” and headed out on the deck, closing the sliding glass doors behind him.  
Riley’s coffee finished brewing and she put milk and sugar in it. Finally Sean said, “I guess I have some explaining to do.” Riley just shrugged. “Come here and sit down with me,” Sean told her.

She set her coffee down on the table and sat in a chair, not looking at him.

In his mind, Sean said, ‘I’m sorry, baby,’ out loud he said, “I didn’t want to go out with you.” Riley’s head snapped up at him when he said that. He continued, “You and me….we’re done here.” *sorrysorrysorry*  
“Wh-what?”  
“I should have just told you no right off the bat, and I didn’t, and for that I’m sorry. I mean believe me, if you’d like to fuck again, I’d be down for it. But we can’t be together. I live on the other side of the country.”   
“But I have money. I could come out and visit. Maybe one or two weekends a month.”  
“Absolutely not.” *I would love that*  
“Why not? I don’t understand.”  
“Because I can’t date someone like you, Riley. Come on! My ex was a Playboy model!” *and I couldn’t stand her*  
“But you said I was beautiful.”  
“You’re definitely ‘cute’, Riley, but you aren’t a girl I could take on the red carpet! I mean look at yourself!” *don’t listen to me, you ARE beautiful*  
Riley looked down at her clothes. Baggy grey sweatpants, beat up, black Converse low tops, and an old Minor Threat t-shirt of Norman’s that he was going to throw away until she asked if she could have it. It was so soft, and she loved it, but it was kind of faded and beat up.  
Sean continued. “That shirt has holes on the sleeves and looks like it should be a dust rag!”  
*no it doesn’t, you look adorable*  
Riley knew he was right, but if she was just going to be at the house all day, she saw no reason to get dressed up. But now she just felt shabby and pathetic and ashamed.  
“I need a girl who even on her days off looks red carpet ready.” *no, I just need you*  
Sean could practically hear her heart breaking into a million pieces. “You just aren’t good enough, Riley. You’re a great lay, but you aren’t girlfriend or wife material.”  
Riley felt like she’d been punched in the gut. “But...you chased me for a year.”  
“Yeah, when I was here. Don’t think I wasn’t fucking girls elsewhere.” *I wasn’t, I wanted you* “The only reason I chased you as long as I did is because you were the ultimate challenge. But I had you. It’s done. We’re done.” *it’s more than that, sorrysorrysorry*  
“You stayed with me overnight in the hospital.”  
“There was a hot nurse on the floor. Not to mention the sexy lady doctor that took care of you.” *don’t listen to me, I’m lying, and I’m sorry*  
“Sean, why are you saying all these mean things to me?”  
Sean was using all of his talents as an actor. “Riley, you just don’t mean that much to me.” *yes you do* “I’m sorry I let it go on like I did.”  
Riley just felt like she couldn’t even breathe. First she gets attacked, then the next guy who comes along tells her that she’s nothing. She stood up. Norman turned around on the deck and looked in the window just in time to see Riley pull her hand back and slap Sean so hard that he could hear it outside. “Fuck you, Sean Patrick! Go back to Hollywood and your stupid Playboy ex!” she screamed just as Norman came in. She ran to her room and locked the door. It may have been immature, but she couldn’t be around him anymore.   
Sean was rubbing his cheek where a red, angry handprint was showing up. Damn, she hit him hard. If he hadn't been so distracted he would have been able to block it. Norman stormed in. “Sean, what did you do?”  
“I told you I’d fix it if she still wanted me. She doesn’t want me,” Sean said softly.  
“WHAT DID YOU SAY TO HER?” Norman yelled. Riley was his friend, and she was hurting, he saw it all over her face.  
“I said the truth! I never really wanted her, I just wanted to fuck her!”  
Norman grabbed Sean by the front of his shirt and threw him up against the door frame. “What the hell is wrong with you?”  
Sean glared at Norman. “Best get your hands off me, brother, before I break them.” 

Suddenly they heard the sound of tires peeling out, and Brice came in, out of breath, telling them, “Riley took off. We were changing shifts! She always waits for us, but she didn’t! One of my men grabbed a car and is going to see if he can catch up to her.” As if on cue, a second car could be heard peeling out. Brice told them he would stay in contact with his man and be sure she was found. They assumed she was heading for the highway, just needing to get away. Norman told Sean, “You’d better pray she’s ok. If anything happens to her, I’m holding you responsible.”  
Sean replied, “She’s gonna be fine. Brice’s guy will catch up with her. She’s just blowing off steam.”  
“That asshole is still out there, Sean. Riley isn’t safe.”  
Sean honestly hadn’t thought of that. The bodyguards and being shadowed and setting the alarm had become so normal. They hadn’t seen hide nor hare of Kevin since the note at the grocery store. “She’s gonna be fine,” he said again, and hoped he was right.

Riley had to get out of there. She couldn’t think. She couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t be under the same roof as Sean right now. The guys were busy yelling. Riley grabbed her purse and walked out the front door without them even noticing, and got in Herbie. She knew that shift change was going on with the security guys and she was glad. She might be able to get out of there without a fucking babysitter. All she wanted was to be alone for a while.   
When she pulled out she left tire tracks in the road, and pushed Herbie as hard as she could. “Come on buddy,” she told the car. “Don’t let me down now.” Sometimes she was sure that car could understand her, and this was one of those times. Herbie kicked himself into gear and left nothing but dust.  
Riley wasn’t sure at first where she was going. She didn’t want to hit the highway. Then she knew the perfect place, the baby lake.  
When she first got to Senoia, on her days off from Bailey’s, she would just drive around the town, trying to explore all places that the dozens of dirt roads led to. She found a place that was miles back from the main road. Looked like pasture land but had no fences or anything, and had a teeny little pond. It had probably been a watering hole at one point, fed on one side from one little creek and drained at the other side by another. The water probably only got to waist deep after a good rain. But she called it the baby lake, and hadn’t been in a while. She turned onto the dirt road that led to it, hoping the dust would settle and she’d be gone behind the bend before any of her babysitters came by.  
She got her wish. Whoever was following her continued to head for the highway, while Riley trundled along the dirt road with Herbie. “Thanks buddy,” she said, patting the dashboard, and continued on. After a few minutes, she got to the place. She killed the engine and walked over to the water. She sat down, took off her shoes and socks and rolled up the bottoms of her sweatpants, sitting close enough to put her feet in the water. Sean’s voice echoed in her head, “I mean look at yourself! That shirt has holes on the sleeves and looks like it should be a dust rag!” Unable to help herself, Riley started crying. He rejected her while her goddamn nail marks were still in his back! This wasn't a fucking college frat boy trying for a notch on his bedpost, this was a grown-ass man! What 50 year old acts like that?

 

Brice’s phone rang. It was the guy who had taken off after her. He’d gotten to the highway but hadn’t spotted her. He told Norman and Sean, and both of them went pale. He told his guy, “Stay on the highway for a few more exits. If you don’t see her head back. Maybe she doubled back somehow.” Turning to Norman and Sean, he said, “Do either of you have any idea where she’d be?” They shook their heads. They didn’t know about the baby lake. Brice got on his walkie. “I want every available man out looking for Riley. She’s disappeared on us. We just need to make sure she’s ok.” Turning back to the guys he said, “Alright, what the hell is going on here? I don’t need to know everything, but this is not like her to just take off.”  
Norman said bluntly, “Sean was an asshole and broke her heart.”  
Brice shook his head. Getting back on his walkie, he said, “If you find her, leave her alone. Just make sure she’s ok and keep an eye on her from as far as possible.” He headed back outside to his post. He hoped Riley was ok, he liked her.

Kevin couldn’t believe his luck. He’d been watching from miles away, just waiting and waiting for weeks. He knew sooner or later somebody somewhere would screw up and he’d get to Riley. All his different disguises allowed him to move around Senoia and nobody even questioned him. He remembered the first time he’d driven past Sheriff Grimes, the cop hadn’t even looked twice.   
After high school, he’d taken some technical classes at a college in make up effects. He was good at it, very good. He’d done a little work here and there, and had actually come to Senoia hoping to work on The Walking Dead with Greg Nicotero, but got rejected. Just as well, he really did need to lay low. He decided to stay in Senoia, as he was already wanted in a couple of other states. Small towns didn’t attract much attention.  
But he was watching Riley through high powered binoculars. He saw her fly out of the house, get into her crappy car, and take off...before that security team even knew what happened. He put the minivan into gear. Less than 30 seconds after she flew by, he pulled out going the same way. He followed her from far behind, and saw her turn suddenly down a dirt road. He pulled the minivan over into a turn out, effectively giving her camouflage. Today he was made up as an old man. He stepped out of the car with a cell phone to his ear, acting like he had just stopped to take a phone call. Within minutes, a security guy zoomed past, not even looking at the dirt road. Idiot.  
He got back in the minivan, and decided to just wait awhile. He was going to savor this. He knew there were no other roads going off of that one, and the only way out was back this way. He was going to enjoy every second.

Sean and Norman both decided to call Riley, but it went straight to voicemail. They texted, but she didn’t answer. She had turned off her phone and shoved it in her pocket. Fuck both of those assholes.

Sean’s voicemail was in full asshole mode. “Get your ass home and quit acting like a child, Riley! Brice has got his entire crew out looking for you!”  
Then Norman’s, full of concern, “Come home sweetie. We can work everything out, ok? At least call us, let us know you’re ok.”  
Their texts said the same thing. Checking the time, she saw she’d been there for quite a while. It was actually starting to get a bit chilly. She should probably go home. Another voicemail from Norman. “Riley, if we don’t hear from you in the next 5 minutes, we’re calling the police.” Well shit. She didn’t want that. She grabbed her shoes and socks, and opened Herbie’s door. She was about to pull out her phone and let Norman know she was coming home, when a minivan started to pull up. So much for finding a secret place. A very old man got out, waving a road map. “Excuse me young lady, can you help me? I seem to be lost.” She smiled. Old people seriously needed to learn how to use a GPS.  
“Sure thing. Where was it you were trying to get to?” she asked politely.  
“Well, “ he said with an embarrassed laugh, “I was hoping to see some of those TV stars from that Walking Dead show. I really like it.”  
“Oh, me too. Well,” she said looking at the map, “this is where we are right now, and here is where they film.” She pointed a to a spot. “Sometimes if you wait outside you can see them and sometimes they stop.”  
“Oh, I like that Maggie girl quite a bit, she’s quite a looker!”  
Riley laughed. “Well I’m sure she’d stop for a handsome fella like you.” She pointed to another spot. “This is a coffee shop that people have seen Norman Reedus at.”  
“I don’t suppose you know where he lives?”  
“No, sir, I don’t. Sorry.”  
The old man dropped his ‘old man’ voice. “Now why would you lie about that, Riley?”  
Riley took a step backward. There was something familiar in the old man’s eyes. Something she didn’t like. “How do you know my name?”  
“You like to lie, don’t you? You lied about having herpes, too,” he reached into his pocket.  
Riley went white as a sheet. “Oh god. No. Nonono.” She tried to turn and run, but he was faster than her. She heard a loud clack, then a second later it felt like the side of her head exploded, and she was out for the count.

Kevin had loved that Riley had no idea who she was talking to. Always friendly and stupid. He had pulled one of those metal, collapsible police batons out of his pocket. The loud clack was him snapping it open before he whacked her on the side of the head. Twice. It was actually kind of spooky, he might have given her brain damage. He hit her once and she stumbled, turned and said, “Mama?” and reached for him. It freaked him out so bad he whacked her again. What kind of grown woman asked for her mommy when she was hurt?

Norman was about to call the cops, when suddenly Sean yelled out, “Her phone tracker! Remember! I put the app on her phone without her knowing!” They both felt stupid for not thinking of it. Norman could only hope that Riley hadn’t found and removed it. “I got her!” Sean shouted. He showed Norman, shoved the phone back in his pocket, and they ran out to the car, telling Brice they were going to get her, they had an idea of where she was.   
They flew down to the baby lake. They were chilled by what they found. No Riley, but Herbie was there. Driver’s side door wide open, with her shoes and socks on the seat. Her purse was in plain view, wallet still inside, along with Herbie’s keys in the ignition. “Where the hell is she?” Norman asked. They were essentially in the middle of a field, she couldn’t be hiding. “Riley!” Norman called out.   
Sean suddenly said, “Norman, look at this.” On the road here were two sets of footprints. Someone with shoes, and Riley’s little bare feet. There was also some blood. Norman grabbed his phone and called Sheriff Grimes, telling him everything that was happening. He came minutes later with Tara, who started cordoning off the area with crime scene tape. Sean rechecked Riley’s app. He cursed himself for not keeping it open. Her little spot was a few miles away now, stationary. He showed Norman and they were about to take off when Tara said, “Whatever car he’s driving, it has Bradford White Wall tires.” Everyone looked at her. “My dad ran a tire shop, I know these things. Look, it’s faded, but there’s a little tiny BWW embedded in one of the treads. See?” she said pointing it out. “Not many people have white walls these days.” Rick put out an APB for ANY vehicle with white walls to be stopped and searched, while Norman and Sean went out to check her dot. It still hadn’t moved.

They followed it to a field a few miles away, and looked at each other. She’d been left for dead in a field once already. They got out and started following the dot again, calling her name. Finally they were right on top of it. Sean crouched down. Riley’s phone. But no Riley.


	15. Chapter 15

“Where the fuck is she?” Norman yelled looking around. “I don’t know. I’m gonna call Grimes, tell him to get more men out here,” Sean said, dialing his cell.

Some more Senoia cops plus a few state troopers came and condoned off the area, looking for evidence. Norman and Sean were beside themselves. Wherever she was, she was in danger. Norman called Brice to let him know that Riley was really missing, and in danger, and let him know where Riley’s car was found. Suddenly Norman said, “Does he remember what color? Did it have white wall tires? Holy fuck. Ok, thanks.”  
“What’s going on?” Sean asked.  
“Mikey, Brice’s guy, saw only one car on the road, and it was at a turnout near the dirt road leading to where Riley’s car was found. He said it was a bronze minivan from the 80’s, with a metallic paint job….and white wall tires. He remembered the tires because nobody has them anymore. He said there was some old guy standing outside on a cell phone when he drove by.”  
“So maybe he’s got someone working for him or with him?”  
“That’s my guess. Maybe the old guy is his dad or something.”  
Sean ran a hand through his hair. “We need to go back to the house. I need my car, then we can split up and look for this fucker.”  
“Good idea.”

The drive home was silent. Sean was wracked with guilt. This was his fault. He was mean to Riley. He did it because he knew he wasn’t good enough for her. He wanted to make her hate him, it would make things easier. She would be glad to see him go. He didn’t expect her to run off, and he had thought that Kevin was long gone. But he knew that he had her. And he knew he was going to hurt her. He just hoped that they were able to find her before it was too late. He needed her to be ok.

Norman was lost in his own thoughts. His best friend was out there, somewhere, being held by a maniac. He picked up his phone and called Rick, giving him a description of the minivan. They had some Georgia state troopers helping them out, as well as all cars in and out of Senoia being checked out. Having only one main road had it’s advantages. He didn’t tell Rick that he and Sean were going to look for her, because he knew that he’d tell them not to. But there was no way that they could sit at home while Riley was suffering. And they knew if she wasn’t already hurting, she would be soon.

Sean got his car and they decided to head out in opposite directions. “We need to follow every dirt road, check every abandoned barn. I think he’s still here,” Norman said. “I’m on it,” Sean said, taking off. He spent the next 45 minutes driving up and down every dirt road, checking out abandoned barns, even talking to a few people who owned pasture land. Nobody had seen the mysterious minivan or Riley. “Where are you, baby?” Sean whispered as he drove down the road. 

45 MINUTES EARLIER...

Riley’s head hurt. Really badly. Worse than her worst hangover. And she was cold. She wanted to pull the blankets up, but she couldn’t move. Why couldn’t she move? Had she been in an accident? She couldn’t remember. Slowly she opened her eyes. Looking at the ceiling above her, she knew she wasn’t at home. She could see a darkening sky through the slats in the wood. Where was she? She tried to move again, but couldn’t, her hands and feet were tied. Raising her head, she saw why she was so cold….she was naked. Naked, and tied to some kind of old table. Whimpering, she tried to struggle against her bonds, but it was no use. Where was she? How did she get here? She saw another small table not far from where she lay, with different knives on it, and started to shake.  
“Hello, Riley. Nice to see you awake. Thought I might have caused some brain damage, but you always did have a hard head, bitch.” Riley turned her head toward the voice. Kevin. “No,” she whispered. “Nonono….” Kevin laughed. “Yep!” Putting his face close to hers, he asked, “Miss me?”  
When Riley didn’t answer, he said, “I missed you. Been watching you for weeks! I knew sooner or later, you’d slip up. I knew the ninja would leave, or you’d forget to have your babysitters follow you. And I was right. And now you’re here, with me. And nobody knows where you are, and nobody will hear you scream out here. You think that night with me was bad? That’s gonna seem like a picnic compared to tonight. You owe me, bitch. And I’m gonna take it outta your ass. Hope you kissed your ninja goodbye. By the way, real cute to have a tracker on your cell. I tossed it out of the car into some field. They’ll never find you.”  
Riley had no idea what he meant about a tracker and didn’t care, she just let out a bloodcurdling scream.

An hour passed, and Norm called Sean. “Any luck?”  
“No,” the fear was evident in his voice. “She’s gotta be around somewhere. We can’t give up.”  
“We’re not,” Norman said. Let’s keep going, check in in about 30 minutes, ok?”  
“You got it.” Sean turned off the phone and kept driving, turning down yet another endless dirt road…

“Please stop,” Riley whispered, her voice hoarse from him choking her repeatedly. “Please. No more.”  
Both of her eyes were swollen almost shut, she could barely see through them, she was pretty sure her nose was broken, her lips were split, and her jaw ached. It hurt to breathe, she was sure some of her ribs were broken, as well as several other bones. He’d been right, no one could hear her scream out there, wherever they were. She wished her body would at least go into shock, she didn’t want to hang on anymore. In her mind, she was praying for death.   
“Stop?” Kevin cackled. “Stop? Baby, I’m just getting started!” He was sweating and had taken off his shirt. Riley was also sweating, and bleeding from all the small, deep cuts he had placed all over the front of her body. “Well,” he continued, “looks like this side is done. Time to flip you over and do the other!”  
He untied her hands and feet and flipped her carelessly on the table. She didn’t scream, just groaned and grunted in pain. He started to tie her back down, but decided against it. She wasn’t going anywhere. And he had so many more plans for her.

Sean turned down another dirt road. Where was she? Was she still alive? He chastised himself for thinking such a horrible thought. Of course she was alive. That girl was tough as nails. She’d be ok. One of them would find her and they’d take her home and she would be ok. They was no other option, as far as he was concerned. But he was worried. It was getting dark out, and cold too. She must be so cold and scared right now.  
He hit the dead end of the dirt road. About 100 yards out was what looked like an old barn that had seen better days. Looked like part of the roof was gone, as well as some of the slats in the sides. But he saw a faint light in there, like a lantern. Someone was in there. He turned off the car and started walking toward it quietly in the dark.

Riley didn’t want to breathe anymore, it hurt too badly. She didn’t want to exist anymore. She hurt everywhere. Even her hair hurt. He had pulled out chunks of it from the roots, she knew that she had bald patches now. Her back was covered in bruises from Kevin just beating on her. He hit her in her kidneys twice, hard. Her bladder released, and she pissed all over the table and herself, but she didn’t even care anymore. Kevin just laughed. “What’s the matter, Riley? Mommy forget to potty train you? Did you know that the first time I whacked you in the head, you turned around and called me mama? What the fuck is wrong with you?” he asked, picking her head up by her hair. When she didn’t respond, he let it drop back down with a thunk. She knew that anything she said wouldn’t matter. It wouldn’t stop him.  
He pulled her by her legs until her bottom half was hanging off the table, and spread her legs. Leaning over her back, he said, “You owe me this, bitch”, and drove his cock into her. Naturally, she was not lubricated, and as he slammed himself into her, she could only grunt in pain. “Can’t you even get wet, you useless bitch?” Kevin screamed at her. No matter, he kept fucking her, hard and deep, but she gave herself a little smile as she thought ‘Compared to Sean, you have the dick of a six year old boy.’  
Kevin finally pulled out, shooting his cum all over Riley’s naked ass. He was still, she could feel him standing there, between her legs silently. Then he leaned forward a bit, and Riley felt the pain of his knife slicing down her back, she let out a strangled cry. Something about that set him off, and he started slashing wildly, and laughing like a madman. Riley took a breath and started screaming.

Sean was about 20 yards from the place when he heard screaming. He crept up quickly and quietly and peered through the slats. The place was lit only by an old lantern. He saw a girl on a table, naked and covered in bruises and cuts. Someone was standing behind her, between her legs, slashing at her back with a knife. He had no idea what was going on until he heard the person standing laugh and say, “Scream louder, Riley! Nobody’s coming!”   
That girl on the table, or what was left of her, was Riley. HIS Riley.   
Sean pulled out Riley’s cell phone, thankful that he’d kept it on his pocket. He shot her location on the dot to Norman and texted “911”. 

Norman’s phone went off and he pulled over to check it. He saw a location with an address pop up from Riley’s phone and a text of “911”. Sean found her. They needed help. He turned the Jeep around and started flying toward the location, calling Sheriff Grimes on the way.

“Well Riley, it’s been fun. I’d love to stay here and play with you for weeks, but I’ve got places to go and people to see,” Kevin said, as if he were leaving the house of a buddy. Riley knew she was about to die. He picked up a hammer, and leaned down into her face. “You see this hammer? This is how you die tonight. I was gonna just choke you, but I can’t be sure that would do the trick. I don’t wanna have to hang around to see if you wake up or not. I’m sure you wish you’d died the first time, don’t you?” Riley was unable to answer, so Kevin grabbed a handful of her hair, forcing her head to nod yes. “Gonna finish you off, get the hell out of this one horse town, and leave you in this barn to rot.” Kevin raised the hammer, and she closed her eyes, praying it would be quick.

Suddenly someone burst in yelling, “RILEY!” The voice sounded familiar. Kevin spun around and yelled, “Fuck you, ninja boy!” and threw the hammer full force at Sean’s chest. It hit him with a sickening cracking sound, and he went down, clutching his chest.  
Sean felt like he couldn’t breathe. He tried to get up, but Kevin kicked him right under the chin, almost knocking him out. He flew backwards from the impact, and fought to stay conscious. From the corner of his eye, he saw Riley’s lifeless body slide off the edge of the table. Was she dead? Did her little body finally give out? Kevin picked up the hammer from the floor and walked towards Sean with a sick smile. “Looks like I get a 2 for 1 tonight,” he said. “You die, and so does Riley. I’ll be famous! Face it ninja boy, you couldn’t keep her safe from me. I’m fucking invincible!” Kevin raised the hammer above his head, and Sean raised his arms in a feeble defense of himself.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a long chapter, so get yourself something to drink!

Sean couldn’t believe this was how he was going to die. He thought to himself ‘I’m sorry, Riley. I tried.’ Kevin raised the hammer above his head….then dropped it, screaming and gurgling. A knife blade was sticking out of the front of Kevin’s throat and he was grasping at it wildly, trying to dislodge it. He turned to the side, and Sean saw Riley. She was hanging onto Kevin’s shoulder to hold herself up, was holding the knife deep in his throat, and she whisper-screamed in a hoarse voice, “Don’t you touch him!”  
Riley had fallen off the table onto the hard packed dirt floor. Sean was in there, she heard him. Kevin was going to hurt him. No. NO. She didn’t care if she lived or died at this point, but he was NOT getting Sean. Nobody else was dying tonight. Crawling painfully, she grabbed one of his knives off the floor. With every ounce of strength and life she had in her, she stood and plunged the knife right through the back of his neck, holding onto his shoulder for balance. Kevin staggered backwards, ramming Riley’s lower back into the table with an audible crack. She let go of him and fell to the floor, but it was too late for Kevin. He also fell to the floor, dead. Sean said, “Riley? Baby?” but she didn’t answer. He painfully made his way over to her. She was on the floor and for a horrifying moment, he thought she was dead. He saw her ribs just barely expanding and contracting, and started crying tears of relief. As carefully as he could, he gathered her battered little body to his. She was so cold, and this time he had no hoodie or blanket to cover her with. Her little body was losing so much blood, she was practically covered in it. There were sirens in the distance. He hoped they would hurry. “Hang on baby.” He held her in his arms and rocked her gently as his tears fell onto her battered face. “Help is coming. Just hang on…”

Rick knew that there would be trouble so he had radioed for them to send an ambulance, and he was glad he had. They had to hold Norman back. They didn’t know if it was safe, if anyone was alive, or if there was any evidence. Walking in, Rick saw Kevin dead on the floor, and his first thought was ‘Good riddance’. He stepped over the dead man and made his way over to Sean, holding a battered and naked woman, and rocking her gently, saying, “Just hold on, baby.” It took Rick a moment to realize that it was Riley and she was just barely alive. He yelled over his shoulder, “Get that stretcher in here! Call for a helicopter!” The paramedics ran in. Sean didn’t want to let her go, but Rick told him, “You know they aren’t going to hurt her. Let them help.” They took her and gently placed her body on a board, covering her modesty with a blanket before strapping her down. They put a neck brace on her, then placed the board on the stretcher and rushed her out. When Norman saw her, he lost what bit of composure he had left.   
“RILEY!!! NO NO NO!!!! Oh god, Riley!” He fell to the ground, and Tara ran to his side to try and comfort him. They could hear the helicopter coming, they didn’t waste any time. They had hooked her up to IV’s and a portable heart monitor, as well as putting an oxygen mask on her. It was heartbreaking for Norman, he wasn’t even allowed near her. The helicopter was there in 5 minutes, carrying Riley to Grady Memorial, which had one of the best trauma centers in the state. The ambulance was used to transport Sean to the same hospital. He was also hooked up to IV’s and given oxygen, but he wasn’t in the kind of shape Riley was in. Rick was able to speak with Sean and find out what he saw, telling him, “You should have waited for us, you could have gotten killed.”  
“I had to. He was about to kill Riley. I couldn’t wait.”

Riley was flown to the hospital and went straight into trauma surgery. She had a lot of cuts that needed closing, and some bones that needed to be set. She flatlined once in the helicopter, and once on the table. After killing Kevin, she hadn’t regained consciousness.

When Sean got to the hospital, they took him to get his chest xrayed. Due to his good physical shape, he was ok. He was going to have a HUGE bruise that would take awhile to go away and a nice knot on his chin. They found out Riley was in ICU and went up to see her. The doctor who treated her spoke with both of them in his office before he would let them see her.  
“Mr. Reedus, we acquired her medical records from Piedmont Newnan Hospital. She has you listed as her next-of-kin.” Norman tried to keep a poker face. He didn’t know she’d done that, but he just said, “Yes sir.”  
Turning to Sean, the doctor asked, “And you are….?”  
“Sean Patrick Flanery, sir. I’m her fiance,” he said, hoping that would allow him to see her. “Is...is Riley….she’s ok, right?”  
The doctor took a deep breath. “No, I’m afraid she’s not. To be honest, I’m surprised she’s still alive, such as it is.”  
Norman and Sean looked at each other, then Norman said, “What are you talking about? We don’t really know what happened to her. I mean, physically.”  
The doctor opened Riley’s chart. Putting on his glasses, he began to read. “Contusions on the scalp from pulling out her hair in clumps, two black eyes, a broken nose, cracked jawbone, lips split in several spots, three broken ribs, a collapsed lung, two broken fingers, lacerations on wrists and ankles, one ruptured eardrum from being hit on the side of the head, two skull fractures from a blunt object, bruised larynx consistent with strangulation, vaginal abrasions consistent with rape, a dislocated ankle, bruised kidneys, over 3 dozen knife cuts... There isn’t an inch on her body that isn’t bruised or cut.” The doctor threw her chart on his desk, and asked the two men, “Who did this to her?”  
“He’s dead.” Sean said. He and Norman both had tears running down their faces. “He can’t hurt her or anyone else ever again.”  
“Good,” the doctor said. “She has flatlined twice. Once in the helicopter, once on the table. Since we were unable to access her medical records and did not know the next-of kin, we resuscitated her both times. I hope we did not go against any religious or end-of-life wishes?” The doctor looked at Norman.  
He was in shock, but he said, “No, of course not. You did the right thing. Thank you. Can we see her?”  
The doctor gave a sigh. “She’s in a coma.”  
Sean finally looked up. “Wh-what? She’ll come out of it, right? She just needs to heal, right?”  
“We don’t know,” the doctor told them. “Comas are hard to predict. Mr. Reedus, as her next-of-kin, you can make the decision if you want her removed from the machines.”  
“NO!” Norman and Sean both shouted, startling the doctor.  
“I’m sorry,” Norman said. “But do I need to decide that right now?”  
The doctor gave him a small smile. “Not at all. We can wait and see what her vitals say. We are monitoring her brain activity, and she is showing that she is not brain dead. Are you sure you want to see her? She is in very bad shape.”

The guys let the doctor know that YES, they needed to see her. He led them to her door and left. They thought they had prepared themselves, but they were wrong.

Riley looked so small in that hospital bed, and she had wires and tubes coming out of her arms. An oxygen tube was in her mouth taped to her face, while her chin was held immobile by some metal contraption. There were bandages wrapped around her head, and a cast on one hand and one leg. A heart monitor beeped slow and steady. But it was her face, her wonderfully sweet face, that they couldn’t handle. She was unrecognizable. Sean collapsed into a chair next to the bed and started crying in earnest. “This is my fault! This is all my fault!” he cried.  
“No,” Norman said. “It’s not. This is all on Kevin. You said SHE stabbed him?”  
“Yeah. I don’t even know how she managed to stand up. But she did. She saved my life.”  
They stayed by her side silently for a long time. Norman didn’t want to leave, but Sean told him to go home and rest, and he’d stay with Riley. He didn’t want to leave her side.  
He took her hand in his, being mindful of the IV. She had a blood splotch on one finger, and he frowned. Walking to the en suite bathroom, he got a damp paper towel, and gently wiped the blood off. He would have to make sure they took better care of her. Taking her hand in his again, he sat looking at her and the door opened. A male nurse came in. “Sorry sir, just have to check her vitals.”  
“Sure.”  
The young man picked up her chart, and made some notations from the machines, then took her temp using an ear thermometer. He peeled back her eyelids as gently as possible, and shined a light in them. Sean noticed that the whites of her eyes were bloody red. The nurse looked at Sean and said, “I’m sorry about your friend here. Everybody on the floor is pulling for her.”  
Sean forced a small smile, and said, “Thank you.” The nurse went to leave and Sean stopped him. “Can I ask you a question?”  
“Sure.”  
“Can she hear me? If I talk to her will she hear it?”  
The nurse was quiet for a moment. Finally he said, “We really don’t know. I’ve heard stories of people in comas who heard everything that was said. They were even able to recount conversations that people had around them. But some say they don’t hear anything. You want my personal opinion?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Talk to her. It can’t hurt, and if she CAN hear, it might make her feel better to know you’re here and you care.”  
“Ok. Thanks, man.”  
The nurse nodded and left. Sean looked at Riley’s hand in his, unmoving. Then he softly said, “I didn’t mean it, baby. Not a word. I am so sorry. This is all my fault.” He began to cry again, and chastised himself. ‘She doesn’t need you like this! Pull yourself together!’ Remembering that he had sung to her when she was in the hospital the first time, he asked her, “How about if I sing you some Elvis, Ri? Sound good?” Riley didn’t answer, of course. Sean cleared his throat and began singing softly to her. “Wise men say, only fools rush in. But I can’t help, falling in…” He hesitated momentarily. Should he have picked a different song? But he just continued, “I can’t help, falling in love with you.”  
Sean stayed with Riley all night and part of the next day. Then Norman came.  
“Come on, girl,” Norman encouraged her. “You can wake up. You gotta. Why the hell did you name me next-of-kin? I can’t make these decisions. You killed Kevin, sweetie. He’s gone for good. He can’t hurt you, or anyone else. I’m letting Brice and his men go, but he wanted to stop by tomorrow. I think he wants to say goodbye. Some people from the show wanted to come by, too, but I know you’d kill me if I let them see you now. Maybe when you’re healed a bit more. And if you wake up, you can give everyone a hard time when they come in. But that’s just it, Ri. You really need to wake up.” Riley never moved.

Sean and Norman worked out their schedules so that one of them was always with Riley. They didn’t want to leave her alone for even a second, fearing that if she woke up briefly, she would see she was alone and think they didn’t care. The weeks passed by slowly. Norman worked on The Walking Dead as always, and Sean finished up the movie he was filming and extended his stay.

 

Whenever Norman came to sit with her, he would gossip about everything going on on the set. He even whispered a few secrets into her ear, hoping to wake her, but it was useless.  
Sean would hold her hand, sing to her, and beg her to wake up. But she lay there, like a battered Sleeping Beauty.  
One night when Sean was with her, and older nurse came in with a bowl of water and a washcloth to give her a sponge bath. He stepped out into the hallway so Riley could have her privacy. Even though he'd been lucky enough to know her intimately, it didn't seem right to hang around.  
The nurse called him back in when she was done. When he walked in, she was brushing what was left of Riley's hair. "She has such beautiful hair," she told him. "It will grow back quickly. I can't stand to see it tangled, so I brush it for her." Sean gave a small smile, telling the nurse, "She's a really beautiful girl. Tough as nails, too."   
The nurse smiled and said, "Oh I don't doubt that. How long have you two been married?"  
"Wh-what?" he stammered. "We aren't married! We aren't even dating!"  
"Really? With the way you are with her, singing and holding her hand, I was sure you were together."  
"No. No. Not us."  
"Oh well. No matter I suppose." She finished with Riley's hair and shook her head. "Sometimes, I could swear that she hears me."  
Sean sat and took her hand again after the nurse left. "Did you hear her, Riley? She thought we were together," he laughed humorlessly. "Isn't that funny?"  
Looking at her battered face, he saw movement. He was sure he saw her eyes move behind the swollen lids. "Riley?" He pressed the nurse call button. The nurse raced in and he said, "I saw her eyes move!" As he finished talking, her heart rate monitor accelerated. The nurse ran to the door and shouted, "Get the doctor! She may be waking up!" Running back, she said, "Riley, can you hear me?" Riley's heart rate started to slow.  
Sean said, "No, no, come on..." and it sped up again. He and the nurse looked at each other, and she told him, "It's you! Keep talking to her!"  
"Riley-girl, come on. It's time to wake up. You're safe now, it's all over."  
The doctor rushed in just as Riley barely cracked her eyes open, crying out in pain and closing them again. A nurse rushed to shut off the overhead lights, and Sean encouraged her, "Open your eyes again, baby. We turned down the lights."  
She cracked her eyes open. Her vision wasn't good, as her eyes were still swollen, and with her last memory one of being brutalized, she went into a full-blown panic. She started to wail and thrash, making the doctors and nurses back up as one called for an orderly. Sean didn't want anyone to hurt Riley and especially didn't want her to hurt herself, so he pinned her shoulders to the bed, put his face close to hers so she could see him, and snapped, "RILEY! Stop it right now! Look! It's me!" Then as she calmed, repeated softly, "It's me, sweetheart. It's Sean. You're in the hospital. You're ok. You're safe now."  
Riley reached up with her good hand and touched his face. "Sean?" she croaked out in a gravelly whisper, her words slurred by the oxygen tube still in her mouth.  
"Yes, baby," he answered her, almost in tears. "It's me."  
"I hurt," she whimpered.  
An hour and several tests later, Riley was sleeping a normal sleep, although sedated for pain. They still had her connected to IV's and monitors to be on the safe side, but the oxygen tube in her mouth was replaced by one under her nose, and her jaw had to be wired shut. She could still talk, but only through clenched teeth. Norman made it in time to see her before the sedation kicked in. She gave him a tiny smile, and managed to whisper, "Hey boss man," before falling asleep.  
Norman shot a mass text to everyone at the show that Riley was awake. Sean wouldn't let go of her hand.  
One of the people Norman texted was Sheriff Grimes, and he was there the next morning with Tara. As soon as they walked in, Riley burst into tears. Everyone looked at each other, then Tara said, "Riley, what's wrong?"  
"I don't want to go to jail!"  
"Why would you go to jail?"  
"Because I killed him! I killed Kevin! I killed someone, and when you do that, you go to jail!"  
Sheriff Grimes spoke, "Riley, you are NOT going to jail. We DO need a statement from you whenever you're ready and one from Sean as well, but I already spoke to the DA, and he is not planning on pressing charges. As far as anyone is concerned, you acted in self defense. And believe me, the world is a better place without him in it."  
"You aren't going to arrest me?"  
"The thought never even crossed my mind. We came to see you because we're glad you woke up, that's all. And just to let you know we can take your statement whenever you want, we can even wait until you're out of here, if you want."  
"I want to give it now."  
Norman looked at her. "Ri, you've got plenty of time."  
She just repeated, "I want to do it now. While it's still fresh in my mind. Do you have time now, Sheriff?"  
"Of course, Riley, if you're sure," Rick told her.  
Riley took a breath and said softly, "Sean and Norman, you need to leave."  
Sean was stunned. "We stayed last time!"  
"That was last time. I don't want you two to hear this. Please just leave."  
Norman had to drag Sean out. "Let it go, Sean. She doesn't want us to know everything. That's her decision."

Riley spoke to Rick and Tara for about an hour, telling them everything. How she had been angry and stormed out before the security detail could follow her. How Kevin had disguised himself as an old man. Rick asked if he'd come in a minivan with white wall tires, they had found it behind the barn where she was, and she confirmed it. Then she told them everything Kevin had done. From hitting her in the head with the collapsible baton to the rape and slashing at her back. How she couldn't let him hurt Sean and she stabbed him in the throat. And the next thing she remembered was waking up in the hospital. Rick took her statement, and told her again that she would NOT go to jail for this. Tara walked out into the hallway where the guys were waiting. She was visibly pale and shaken. She looked at them and said, "Be glad you didn't have to hear that." When Rick came out a few seconds later, he said, "If you care about that girl at all, when she gets out of here, get her some counseling. No human should have to go through what she went through. Mr. Flanery, are you willing to give your statement now as well?" When Sean agreed, they went into an empty conference room, and Sean was able to corroborate the events at the end. He hadn't seen her get raped, but saw her getting slashed up. Just recounting it had brought tears to his eyes. He looked at Rick and said, "She saved my life. I was the one who made her mad and made her leave. It's all my fault, and she still saved my life."  
"Mr. Flanery, she doesn't blame you."  
"Maybe she should."  
Riley was going to have to stay in the hospital for another few weeks before she could go home, she still needed monitoring, especially for the stitches on her back, as she was more or less bedridden. But Norman and Sean still came every day. With her eyes still very swollen, sometimes the guys would read to her. Norman noticed that now that Riley was awake, Sean didn't hold her hand. She asked him once if he would sing to her, but he declined, saying he had a sore throat.  
He was pulling away. Norman noticed it, and he knew Riley did, too.  
Finally, Riley was allowed to go home. She still had some of her stitches, but most of her bruises had faded and yellowed, and her bad ankle was in a boot so she was at least somewhat mobile. They were able to take the wires off her jaw, and Norman brought her a Walking Dead  
cap to wear home and cover the fuzzy patches on her scalp where her hair was growing in. Norman came alone to pick her up, and after he helped her in the car, she asked where Sean was. "He's at the house. He was on the phone with his agent. I think he has to head back to L.A. soon. He was already signed on for another project back there. But he has a few days. Maybe you two can come to an arrangement?"  
"I don't know."  
"Riley, he didn't mean those things he said."  
"I know. He told me. When I was in my coma. I heard him."  
Norman had just turned on the car and shut it off again. "Come again?"  
"I heard him. I sometimes heard stuff you guys told me. I know that you told me Father Gabriel was finally going to die on the show. And I know Sean told me he didn't mean any of it."  
"You heard us?"  
"Not all the time, just sometimes. I wanted to wake up, but I couldn't."  
Norman just stared at her. Finally she said, "Quit looking at me like that! I asked the doctor, and he said that sometimes people hear stuff. I heard you guys."  
"If you know that Sean didn't mean it, then what's with the 'I don't know'?"  
"Norman....he’s pulling away. I care for him. A LOT. But....I just don't want to throw myself at him and get rejected. Not again."  
"Look, when we get home, I think you and him need to have a big talk."  
"I think so, too."  
Norman told her how Brice had brought her car back. The security detail had been dismissed, however, since Kevin was no longer a threat. So it was eventually going to be just the two of them again. Riley wouldn't be able to drive for a while, so Norman would do the groceries for her. As they pulled into the driveway, Riley said, "Where's Sean's car?"  
"I don't know. Maybe he went into town or something."  
Riley had a sick feeling in her stomach.

They went in the house and Riley limped into her room to put her hoodie away, and saw an envelope propped up against her pillow that said 'Riley'.  
Picking it up and opening it, she saw it was a letter from Sean.

'Dear Riley,  
I'm so sorry all this happened to you, and I blame myself. If I hadn't decided to be a dick to you, you never would have run out like you did, and Kevin never would have gotten to you. I will never forgive myself, and you shouldn't either.  
I decided the best course of action was for me to leave. You deserve someone better than me anyway.   
Don't try to call me, I blocked your number. Believe me, this is all for the best, and I'm so sorry for all the trouble I caused. I never meant to cause you any harm.  
I'm heading back to L.A. sometime tomorrow, and staying at a hotel tonight. Please don't try to find me. I'm sorry, Riley. You'll always be my pretty girl.  
Sean’

Riley came hobbling out of her room and went to Sean's, opening his closet door. All his clothes were gone. She called for Norman and showed him the note. "Look! All of his clothes are gone! He left! Why did he do that?"  
"Try and call him, Ri."  
"He said he blocked my number!"  
"Try anyway!"   
Sure enough, he had blocked it. Norman tried, and his call went straight to voicemail, so he left him a message. "What the hell is wrong with you? Why are you doing this to us? To HER?"  
Sean laid on the bed in the cut rate motel in Atlanta that he was staying at. He knew that if they did try to find him, they would never check a fleabag dump like this. Norman would call every nice hotel he could think of looking for him. Sean took another swig of the cheap whiskey he bought from the store at the corner. Looking at his phone, he saw a voicemail from Norman, and played it back. Once he got to L.A. he'd call Norman. He went through the photos on his phone and found a few of Riley he had taken without her even knowing. An old one of her pouring drinks at Bailey's as she smiled at something a customer said. Her snoozing on the inflatable pool float as she drifted in the sun. Her talking animatedly with Lauren at her wedding in that beautiful green dress...the night he'd finally had her. The night she stole his heart. And days before he broke hers.  
He shook his head. No. He couldn't think about this anymore. He swallowed more of the cheap booze, feeling it burn a fire down his throat and settle in his belly. He did the right thing, he was sure of it. So why did he feel like such shit? He was going to be hungover and miserable on his flight home, and he was glad. He deserved it.  
Back at the house, Norman was indeed calling every decent hotel in Atlanta looking for Sean under both his own name, and the name "Devlin Dubois", Sean's smarmy alter ego. Riley was sitting on the couch staring into space. Norman spent over an hour trying different hotels with no luck, and texting Sean in between, berating him for doing this to Riley.  
Norman sat down next to his friend and put his arm around her. "Don't worry, Ri. When he gets to L.A., he'll start answering his phone again, and we'll get this all straightened out." Riley just nodded.

Sean did eventually start answering his phone for Norman again. But he kept Riley's number blocked. He couldn't bear to talk to her. It infuriated Norman to no end, especially when Sean would ask about her. "Why don't you call her and ask her yourself?"  
"Because I can't."  
Slowly but surely, Riley's wounds healed up, although she was left with scars. She finally was well enough to start leaving the house and doing her errands again. Norman made sure that she got counseling, and she went once a week. But she didn't smile much anymore. A few guys from town asked her out on dates, but she declined. She wasn't ready, and didn't know if she ever would be. And she still had feelings for Sean, the asshole.  
The season of The Walking Dead wrapped, and Norman went back to New York, taking Riley with him. He couldn't stand the thought of her alone in Senoia....she still slept with her light on. They got a referral for another counselor/therapist in New York, and she went to New York with him, and did what she always did: cleaned and cooked, and did her best to be invisible.  
But Sean saw her. Norman did a few gallery shows, and Sean noticed her in the backgrounds of some pictures of him, acting like a random person. She was thinner, and she never smiled. Norman told him that Riley didn't really smile anymore, and that she didn't date, she just stayed close to the house. It broke Sean's heart, but he was still convinced he was doing the right thing.  
After a few months, it was back to Senoia. And Norman finally got to see Lisa again. Her work Visa had finally come through, and they started spending a lot of time together. Luckily, Lisa and Riley got along like old friends. Every few weeks, they'd go out to lunch and have a little mini-spa day: a facial, or a manicure, or a shopping trip. One lunch visit, Riley made a confession to Lisa, and Lisa had to tell Norman. He came home from spending the night with Lisa very perturbed.  
"Riley! Where are you?"  
"In the bathroom."  
“Doing what?”  
“What do people usually do in bathrooms?”  
"Oh….well when you’re done get in here!"  
She walked into the living room. Norman took off his sunglasses looking at her and said, "What's this crap about you leaving?"  
She sighed and said, " I was going to tell you."  
"What the fuck?"  
"Look, you and Lisa are doing great. You never bring her here to spend the night, and I know it's because of me. I also know you are more than likely going to move her in here sooner or later, am I right?"  
"Well...yeah. I'm in love with her."  
"Right. You don't need two bitches in your house, telling you what to do."  
"Riley, I'll still need you. Lisa has a job working for Lauren. She's not going to be here during the day."  
"That's not the point. You DON'T need me Norman. You never did. I make your life a little easier, but you did fine before I came along."  
"But you're going to stay in Senoia, right?"  
Riley didn't answer him.   
"You know you could go back to working at Bailey's. They'd hire you again in a heartbeat. Or, hey, you could stay at my place in New York! Take care of it when I'm not there!"  
"And when you are?"  
"Riley....don't go."  
"I think I need a change of scenery, Norman. This place, this town, has too many memories. And they aren't all good. I think I'm gonna trade in Herbie and buy a new car-"  
"You would trade in Herbie?"  
"Yes. He's an old car, and he's been good to me, but I can't risk breaking down in the middle of nowhere. With a trade in and the money I've saved from working for you, I could get a new car that I won't have to worry about."  
"Where will you go?"  
"I don't know. Just start driving and see where I end up, I guess. That's how I got here."  
"Goddammit Riley! Don't do this! Don't go!"  
"Look, it will be at least a few months before I do anything. I wouldn't just up and leave like....”  
“Like Sean did?”  
“I wouldn't do that. I gotta go grocery shopping. I’ll be back in a bit."  
Norman wasn't happy about that at all. Riley was his best friend, and he truly loved having her living with him. The fact that she wanted to leave Senoia altogether and just go "wherever" was breaking his heart. Damn Kevin. Damn Sean. He picked up his phone and shot Sean a text.   
'Riley is planning on quitting and moving away. Plans to just drive and see where she ends up. Plans to trade in Herbie for a new car. We might never see her again.'  
His phone rang almost immediately. "What do you mean she's leaving?" Sean demanded. Norman recounted the conversation and Sean told him, "Just tell her she can't leave, that's all."  
"She's a grown woman. I can't take her prisoner."  
"Is she there?"  
"No, she just left to buy groceries."  
"Hit me up on Skype."  
Norman opened up the Skype window and looked at Sean. "Dude, you look more and more like shit every time I see you. What the hell?"  
The longer Sean had been away, the worse he got. "Haven't been sleeping well."  
"Because you miss her, you stupid son of a bitch."  
"I know that!"  
"Call her."  
"No."  
They argued back and forth for about 45 minutes, until Norman heard Riley pull up. Sean heard it too, and although Norman begged him to stay on the line and just say hello to her, Sean ended the video call. Riley came in and started unloading groceries like she always did.  
Back in L.A., Sean was still looking at Riley's pictures every day. The ones he'd found of her in the background at the gallery shows he'd blown up bigger so he could see her better and put those in his phone, too. He missed her terribly.

A week later, Riley was in the house waiting for Chinese food delivery. Norman had requested take out for dinner, and that meant she didn't have to cook or wash pots and pans, so she'd gladly obliged. There was knock on the door, and she grabbed the money off of the counter and opened the door. But it wasn't Chinese food delivery.  
"Hi, pretty girl."


	17. Chapter 17

The money fluttered from Riley's hand as she looked at the man she hadn't seen for a year. Sean picked up the money and stepped into the entryway to hand it back to her. "You look great, Riley." She did. She had gained back some weight, giving her back her lovely curves, her hair had grown back in. He could see a scar poking out of the neck hole of her shirt, and he still thought she was beautiful.  
"Sean, what are you doing here?"  
He looked like crap. He looked, well, haggard was a good word. Like he hadn't had a decent night's sleep in months, and unbeknownst to her, he hadn't. But even though he looked like crap, he was still Sean, and she still felt the butterflies in her stomach take flight, and hated it. "Norman didn't say anything about you coming over."  
"He didn't know. Hell I didn't even know until I was on the plane, really," he said with a sad laugh.  
"What do you want?"  
"I wanted to talk to you."  
"I wanted to talk to you once, and you blocked my number. If you hadn't, you wouldn't have had to fly all the way down here for me to tell you to FUCK OFF!" Sean winced when she said that. He deserved it.  
"I'm sorry, Riley. I really am. Doesn’t it mean anything to you that I flew across the country to tell you that?"  
Riley was silent.  
"When you were in your coma, I told you something-"  
"I know what you said."  
"Norman told me that. He said that you told him that you heard me say that I had lied to you. And I did Riley. I hurt your feelings and told you that you didn't mean anything. But my god, you mean everything. Look at me! I know I look like shit! I can't eat, I can't sleep...all I wanted was to be with you."  
"Then why? Why did you leave when I needed you the most? You rejected me! After I was raped and brutalized! Do you realize what I went through for you? Sean, I killed a man. And yes, he was a horrible human being, but I killed him. I killed a man for YOU. To save YOU. I was ready to die, but I couldn't let anything happen to you. And then you just walked away. You left me alone to deal with it all by myself for a year! A goddamn year! I’m in therapy for everything that happened, and I still sleep with my light on like some damn kid! You told me you cared, and then left, and I know why."  
Sean was confused. "Why do you think I left, Riley?"  
"I own a mirror, Sean. I know what I looked like then. And I know what I look like now. I am literally scarred for life."  
"No, Riley. That's not it. I told you in the letter why I left you. It was all my fault. I made you want to get out of the house and be alone, and Kevin must have been watching you all the time. You're still my pretty girl."  
"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" she yelled. Without thinking, she pulled off her shirt, and screamed, "Look at me! I look like a freak!"  
Sean ran his eyes over her body. She had red lines from scars criss crossing her....and she was still beautiful. Without thinking, he reached his hand out and touched her chest, tracing a scar, and murmured, "You're still beautiful. Still my pretty girl."  
He snapped out of his trance, and raised his eyes to her face. She was frozen watching him. She whispered, "You're touching me."  
He pulled his hand away. "I'm sorry."  
"Please don't stop. He was the last person who touched my body. I can't stand that."  
Sean placed his warm hands on her waist, then ran them up her arms, sliding around her neck and pulling her to him. He held her close to him, and she wrapped her arms around his waist. He didn't kiss her, or do anything. Just stood there in Norman's entryway, with his arms around Riley. And it felt RIGHT. He felt RIGHT for the first time in almost a year. He dropped his lips to the top of her head, and whispered, "Baby, I am so so sorry. I thought I was protecting you. I thought I was doing the right thing." She squeezed him tighter, and he ran his hands down her back, over her scars, feeling her stiffen at first, then relax. He whispered, "My beautiful Riley."  
A voice behind Sean said, "Um, did someone call for Chinese delivery?" Sean spun and made sure the delivery guy’s view of Riley was blocked. He handed the guy the money, said, "Keep the change", took the food and shut the door. Marching into the kitchen, Sean all but threw the food into the fridge, and returned to Riley. Throwing caution to the wind, he took her face in his hands and kissed her...and felt like a huge weight was lifted off of him when she returned the kiss.  
Suddenly she broke it off looking away. "Riley?" She just shook her head and put her shirt back on. "What's wrong, sweetie?" Riley took a breath and sat on the couch.   
"Sean, I can't go through this again. I just can't. You fucking destroyed me. I can't do it again."  
"You won't. Because I won't do that again."  
"What about us living on opposite sides of the country? What about that?"  
"We'll work it out. We'll make it work. Riley, please. Please. Please don't push me away. I know I would totally deserve it, but I'm begging you." He got down on his knees in front of her. "I am literally on my knees, begging you. I am the guy who always runs from commitment. But I'm here. I came to you. I couldn’t stand to be without you another second. I want this to work. I'm willing to try. Tell me you’ll try, too." He put his forehead on her knees. "Please, Riley, I want you in my life. I'll do anything."  
"Anything?"  
"Yes."  
"Kiss me again."  
Sean's head snapped up when she said that. She had a tiny smile on her lips....the first in months. He rose up on his knees and gently pressed his lips to hers, loving it when she parted them and softly slid that sweet tongue of hers into his mouth. They both stood without breaking the kiss, and Riley wound her arms around his neck, her fingers threading up into his hair. He pulled her tightly against his body, and she started walking him backward. At first, he thought she was going to make him leave. Instead, she was taking him into her bedroom.  
Once in there, she broke the kiss, and took off her shirt. Sean reached for her, sliding his hands over her smooth shoulders. She put her hands over his and slid them own over her breasts.  
"Riley, are you sure?"  
"Do you mean what you said?"  
"Yes, every word."  
"Then yes, I'm sure."  
He slid her bra straps off of her shoulders and reached around to unhook it, then took off his own shirt and held her against him, feeling her nipples pebble against his chest. Suddenly, he said, "Shit."  
"Let me guess, you aren't prepared?"  
"For groveling and begging? Yes. For sex? No.”  
Riley walked out of the room and came back a few minutes later with a condom. Sean smiled and said, "From Norman's stash?"  
"Yep. We'll have to get our own soon. He's getting laid regularly now."  
Sean led her over to the bed and sat on the edge of it as he unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans, and slid them down over her legs, and she stepped out of them. Then he stood, and she did the same to him. Riley sat on the edge of the bed, and smirked at him. She reached over and pulled his boxer briefs down, and his hard cock stood up against his belly. She wrapped her hand around it and gently pumped it a few times, then slid it into her mouth, making Sean gasp.  
He hadn't been with another woman since Riley, and hadn't had a blowjob in even longer. Her mouth was so smooth and hot. She couldn't fit him in entirely, but she wrapped her hand around the base to compensate. With every bob of her head, she twisted her hand around the base, and Sean was loving it. He pushed her hair back so he could watch her work him over, and she raised her eyes up and locked on his, never slowing down.  
"Fuck, Riley-girl," he breathed out.  
Riley hummed around his cock and he gasped. "Gonna kill me!"  
She did it again and again, and he couldn't take it anymore. Between the warm wetness of her mouth, her hand twisting around it, and the vibrations of her humming, he tried to pull away, warning her, "I'm gonna cum, baby!" But instead of releasing his cock, she sucked harder, and he couldn't hold back any longer, shooting down the back of her throat again and again, with an animalistic cry.  
His softening cock slid out of her mouth and Sean stumbled, making Riley reach for him. "You ok, Sean?"  
"Yeah, fuck that was amazing. Made me weak in the knees!"  
Sean collapsed on the bed and rested for a moment, then got a wicked smile and looked at Riley. "One good turn deserves another, little girl."  
He rolled her over on her back, and attacked her nipples, pinching them slightly between his lips, and loving the little jolts it gave her body. Sliding down her body, he pulled off her panties, and could see and feel that they were wet. "Getting hot?"  
"Mmm, yeah."  
Sean slid her legs apart, then pushed them up, grabbing her hands to hook them around her knees. "Hold your legs like that, baby." Riley felt extremely exposed and a little shy, but did as she was told. Sean dragged his tongue slowly from the opening of her twat all the way up to her clit....she tasted so fucking good. Norman always talked about how he loved to eat pussy, while Sean was more the type to do it as a means to an end, not a main attraction. But now he knew why Norman liked it. If any of the girls he was eating tasted half as good as Riley.....no wonder.   
He flattened his tongue against her and pressed it inside of her, making her gasp.  
Sean’s head was bobbing back and forth as her fucked her with his tongue. Riley was still holding onto her legs, but her body was rocking against his face. Sean’s hands were on her thighs, keeping her legs pushed back and spread wide open. He slid one hand up to her clit, catching it between his thumb and forefinger and gently twirling it.  
“Oh fuck yes…” she moaned. “I… I need…”  
Sean unlatched his mouth long enough to say, “What do you need, baby?”  
Instead of answering, she put her fingers over his on her clit, pinching his fingers on it a bit tighter, her body jerking, and she moaned out, “Just like that….oh god, yeah…”  
Sean kept up his assault as Riley rocked harder against him. He felt her pussy walls start to flutter against his tongue, and quickly pushed two fingers inside her. Her eyes, flew open, she screamed, “YES!” and grabbed his wrist, pumping his fingers into her more forcefully. When he saw cum dribbling out of her, he started licking all around his fingers, trying to not lose a drop. His dick was getting hard again, watching Riley fuck herself with his fingers and hearing her rhythmic, animalistic grunts through her orgasm.  
She finally released his wrist, and he slid his fingers out of her, licking them clean, then gently licked her pussy. He pulled her hands from her knees as she was still holding on to them. She kept her legs raised, and he said softly, “I got them, sweetie”, and gently lowered them to the bed.  
Her eyes were closed, and she was trying to slow her breathing. Sean slid up next to her and asked, “You ok?” She gave a smile and said, “Your cum tastes good.”  
That remark was so out of left field that he just started to laugh. After a second, so did she. Riley couldn’t remember the last time she’d smiled or laughed. Sean propped himself up on one elbow and looked at her. “We’re going to make this work, Riley. We have to.”  
Riley pulled him toward her for a kiss, mumbling against his mouth, “I can taste myself on your tongue.”  
“You taste damn good, lady.”  
“Yeah I do.”  
They giggled again, and Sean grabbed the condom. “You ready for more, Riley?”  
“Always.”


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here comes the smut!

Sean put on the condom and positioned himself between her open legs. Riley looked scared. “You okay, Ri?” She looked away, then back. “Yeah. I mean I haven’t been with anyone since…..you know. And believe me, he was definitely….petite. I guess I’m just nervous.”  
“We don’t have to, baby.”  
“Yes we do.”  
“Riley, we don’t.”  
“But I WANT to. Sean, I want this. I want you. I want us. I’m just nervous is all.”  
Sean looked at her and took a deep breath. “We’ll start slow. You need me to stop, for any reason, just say so. Ok?”  
Riley nodded.  
Sean slowly slid his hard length into her, his eyes never leaving hers. As he filled her, stretching her, she sighed, “Oh god, Sean….”  
“Are you ok?  
“Oh yeah.”  
He slid almost completely out and back in, relishing how tight she was. “Baby, fuck, how are you so damn tight?”  
“Just lucky, I guess. Maybe I’m not tight, you’re just BIG.”  
Riley raised her legs and wrapped them around his waist. She tried to look away from him, but he said, “No, Riley. Look at me.”  
Those damn eyes of his got her every time.  
He laced his fingers with hers, and leaned down kissing her neck. He whispered, “ Together, Riley. We’ll make it work.” He raised his head and looked at her, “We’ll make it work. I promise you.”  
He began to speed up, and Riley lifted her hips to meet his every thrust. Sean let go of her hands and hooked his arms under her shoulders and sat up and back on his heels, pulling her with him. Her own weight sank her deeper on to him, and she shivered. “Oh god, Sean….so good...soo fucking good……” Riley began to bounce on his cock, he caught one of her nipples in his mouth, and smiled as she scratched her nails gently across his back.  
“Scratch me harder, girl. Mark me.”  
Riley’s eyes locked with him when he said that, and he nodded. “I’m yours girl. Mark me. Let people know.”  
“I don’t want to hurt you.”  
“Hurt me, baby. I deserve it. I want it.”  
Riley took a breath, dug her nails in, and dragged them down his back.  
Sean lost it.  
He threw her back down on the bed, and started to really FUCK her, hard. The expression on his face was primal, and he leaned close to her face, and growled out, “Fuck yes, Riley…”

He felt so good, sweat starting to cover his body, burning the scratch marks on his back. “Riley, I’m so close….” He flipped them over so she was on top, and rubbed her clit with his thumb as she sat up and rocked her body on his. That was the little bit that she needed. Sean felt her tightening around him and she began to shake. “Let me hear it, girl!” He was hanging on by a thread. Her back arched and she cried out. “SEAN!!! OH GOD! YES! OH Sean…..”  
Riley was fluttering around his cock, and he couldn’t take it. “FUCK YES, RILEY! AH!!! Oh Riley...oh god…”

Riley was still rocking gently on him, head back, eyes closed. She lowered her head and opened her eyes, giving him a small smile. “Hi, Sean.” He chuckled, “Hi, baby. Come down here.” Riley raised herself up a bit, letting him slide out of her, and laid down next to Sean. He rolled over to dispose of the condom. When he did, Riley saw his back and gasped. “I made you bleed!”  
“I don’t doubt it.”  
Riley sat up. “I should get something to clean it! I’m so sorry!” Sean pulled her back down and wrapped his arms around her. “Later. It’s ok right now.” She looked worried, so he continued, “Hey, I asked you to do that, didn’t I?”  
“Well, yeah, but-”  
“But nothing. You did exactly what I wanted. And you know what I want now?”  
“What?”  
“A nap. You wear me out, little lady.”  
Riley snuggled into his side and they both drifted off.

Not long after they fell asleep, Norman came home. There was a strange car in the driveway, and that made him a bit uneasy. Opening the front door, he called out softly, “Riley?” There was no answer. Her bedroom door was closed, and he opened it, saying softly, “Ri?” He was not prepared for what he saw. Riley and Sean, wrapped around each other, obviously freshly fucked, and fast asleep. He got a small smile on his face, and said, “Well I’ll be damned….” He closed the door and went to get a beer. He couldn’t wait for them to wake up. This was going to be interesting.

An hour later, Riley woke up, and shook Sean awake. “We should get up,” she told him, “Norman will be home soon. He’s not gonna know what to make of this.” She put on Sean’s t-shirt, and Sean put on his boxer briefs. They wandered into the kitchen, and there was Norman, drinking a beer, with a big grin on his face. Riley pulled Sean’s shirt down to cover herself a little more, then said cheerfully, “Uh...hi boss man!” Still grinning he said, “Hello. This is an interesting turn of events. Sean, can I talk to you outside please?”  
Sean said, “Let me go put on my pants.” As he turned to leave, Norman exclaimed, “What the hell happened to your back?” Sean and Riley looked at each other and Norman said, “Nevermind. Just meet me outside.”  
When he left, Riley said, “Um, am I fired?”  
Norman rolled his eyes. “Why do you always think you’re fired? No, you are NOT fired. You’re fine. But could you go put on some clothes? I feel weird with you walking around like that.”

Riley walked into the bedroom as Sean was walking out. “You ok?” he asked.   
“Yeah, and I’m not fired. That’s a relief.”  
Sean dropped a kiss on top of her head and went out onto the deck. Norman was standing there with his arms crossed. He didn’t look happy. “What the fuck are you doing, Sean?”  
“I had to see her. Hell, I didn’t even pack a bag. Just drove to the airport and bought a ticket. It was like I didn’t even know I was doing it until I did it.”  
“So you came here….why? To fuck her and disappear again? Do you have any idea what it did to her when you left? She NEEDED you, and you just left her. For fuck’s sake, you left her a damn ‘Dear John’ note! What kind of asshole does that?”  
Sean crossed his arms and hung his head. “An asshole like me, I suppose. Look, I came all this way just to talk to her. I literally flew across the country for her. Doesn’t that count for anything? I need her. I’m crazy about her. And I came to her. I want the two of us to have something. I want us to try. I want us to make this work.” He raised his head. “I need to try. You know how I’ve been. Can’t sleep, can’t eat, I know I look like shit. I thought I was doing the right thing. I felt responsible for what happened to her. And every time I looked at her, every bruise, every cut….I felt like I had done it. All I did while I was away was think about her.”  
“Bullshit!”  
“It’s true!” Sean pulled his phone out of his pants pocket, and pulled up every photo he had of her, including the slightly blurry ones that he had enlarged with her in the background at the art shows. “I looked at these every goddamn day! Look at this one - when she was still working at the bar. And these - she was in the background of some of the pics from your art shows. I looked for her in your pictures. I missed her. I asked you so many times if she was alright and you would never tell me!”  
“Because you should have manned the fuck up and called her, jackass. Instead you blocked her damn number.”  
Sean heaved a sigh. Then he just softly said, “It’s unblocked now. I was afraid. Afraid I’d screw up, that I’d hurt her worse….and afraid she’d reject me like I’d done to her.” Turning to Norman, he just shrugged his shoulders and said, “I’m crazy about her. That’s all there is to it. If you want me to go, I’ll go, but you won’t keep me away from her. Me and Riley, we’re going to make it work. We’re going to try.”   
He went to walk back into the house, but Norman stopped him. “I hope you’re serious. Because if you hurt her again….I may have to rethink my friendship with you. I almost did last time.”  
“Fair enough.”

Riley was in the kitchen reheating the Chinese food. She turned when they came in and Norman noticed how her face lit up when she looked at Sean. And she smiled. For the first time in almost a year, Norman saw Riley smile.

Sean could only stay for a week as he was in between projects. And since he didn’t even bring any clothes and had taken the few in the closet last time he left, he made plans to go into Atlanta the next day and just buy some. Riley’s face looked panicked and she said, “But you’ll come back, right? You’re coming back here, right?” And both Sean and Norman’s hearts broke to hear the fear in her voice. Sean took her hand and said, “I am coming back. I promise you that. No more running away. Do you want to come with me? Would that be better?” Riley looked down at her clothes, then at the floor and shook her head no. Very softly, she said, “I know I don’t dress well. I wouldn’t want to embarrass you.” Sean felt like an asshole. “Riley, I told you I didn’t mean anything I said that day. I don’t care how you dress. I think you’re absolutely beautiful no matter what you wear.” She shook her head, telling him, “No, I have my counseling appointment tomorrow anyway.” Norman looked at Sean and raised an eyebrow, as if to say, ‘See, asshole?’ 

Sean did go into Atlanta the next day to buy clothes, and he came back to Senoia with a little present for Riley. A bouquet of sunflowers. He remembered they were her favorite. Seeing her face light up when she saw them was the best thing he’d seen in a long time. He asked her, “You like them?”  
“Yes, they’re my favorite!”  
“I know, I remember that.”  
“And I like that you came back.”  
Sean knew it might take a very long time for her to trust that he would always come back. “So….how was your counseling appointment? I feel like I should ask, and at the same time I feel like it’s none of my business…”  
Riley was putting the flowers in a vase and said softly, “It went….ok. I mean, it’s not fun. I wish I could forget about it, but every time I look in a mirror, I remember…” he voice cracked a little. Sean got up and put his arms around her. “Never again, Riley. Nobody will ever hurt you if I have anything to say about it.” He steered her over to the kitchen table and had her sit down, pulling another chair close. Taking her hands in his, he told her, “Have I ever told you how proud I am of you?” She shook her head no. “Well I am. You are the toughest person I know. You are so much stronger than I am. After all you went through, after all the shitty things I said to you, you still saved my life.”  
“I’m not stronger than you. You’re a black belt.”  
“And it did me no good that night.”  
“I couldn’t let him hurt you. I didn’t care if I lived or died, but I wouldn’t let him hurt you. But if you hadn’t distracted him by busting in like you did, I wouldn’t have been able to….”  
“Do you still feel guilt about it?”  
“I feel bad about TAKING a life. But I don’t feel bad about taking HIS life. He killed two girls before me, and he would have killed more after. He never would have stopped.”  
Sean nodded, pulled her to her feet, and wrapped his arms around her, asking, “Did I ever thank you for saving my life?”  
“Nope.”  
“Thank you, Riley.”  
“Thank you for saving my life, Sean. If you hadn’t found me when you did….” she started to cry, and Sean just held her.   
“Shhh…..it’s ok, pretty girl. I won’t let anybody hurt you ever again.” It was a promise he intended to keep.

For the week that he was there, Sean stayed in Riley’s room. Norman watched carefully, but it seemed that Sean was being honest, and cared about Riley. He was honest with her from the start, letting her know that he could only stay a week, he had to go back to L.A. and work. And Riley seemed to be ok with it. Not happy, but she understood. Sean had to work and do his job, just like she did. During the day, Sean would stay out of Riley’s way so she could still do her job, as well. He would read or watch movies while she puttered around the house, watching her when she wasn’t looking with a little smile on his face. And mid-week he told her to dress up and took her to the fancy place in Atlanta he had stood her up for. And Norman loved that Riley smiled and laughed again. She and Sean would retire to her bedroom early every night, though judging from the giggles (and other sounds) Norman heard, it wasn’t to get a good night’s sleep. He was glad they were going to try and work it out.   
Before Sean left, he and Norman talked to Riley about her plan to leave.   
“You’re undecided?” Norman asked.   
“Yes. But I wouldn’t just disappear on you guys. I might even stay in Senoia, go back to Bailey’s and live back in the trailer park. They’ve really cleaned it up.”  
The guys just looked at her, and finally she said, “Look, like I said, I’m undecided. Let’s just see how things go.”

That night snuggled in bed with Sean, he told her, “I wish you’d stay with Norman.”  
“I can’t stay in his house forever.”  
“I know.” He was quiet, then said softly, “You know, there are lots of jobs in L.A….”  
Riley looked at him. “Sean, don’t. It’s way too soon.”  
“I know. I’m sorry.” He flashed an adorable grin and said, “Can I make it up to you?”  
She smiled back, “I don’t know. Why don’t you give it a shot?”

Sean slid closer, and ran a finger along her bottom lip, saying softly, “Open.” She did and he slid two fingers into her mouth, coating them with saliva. He slid them out, and she could feel them probing gently at her opening. Sean got a little smile and said, “Seems like you're wet enough already,” as he began to pump them in and out of her. “Yeah,” she breathed in reply.   
He leaned down, kissing her, and told her, “Before I leave, we have to plan for you to visit. I don’t want to be away from you for too long.” He withdrew his fingers, licking them clean. As he reached into the bedside table for the condoms, Riley stopped him. “We don’t need them,” she told him. “I...can’t get pregnant.”  
“I know.”  
Riley looked at him. “How do you know?”  
“The first time you were at the hospital, I heard you tell the doctor that you’d had your tubes tied. I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop.”  
Riley looked embarrassed. “It doesn’t change the way you feel about me?”  
“Of course not. I like you because you’re you, not whether or not you can squeeze out a kid for me. Are you sure you don’t want to use one?”  
“Yeah. They ran all the tests on me the last time I was in the hospital. Everything came back clean, and I haven’t been with anybody else since then.”  
“Yeah, I had my physical a few months back. I’m good too.”  
“Ok then,” she smiled. “I just want to feel you.”  
“Ok, gorgeous. Not sure how long I’ll last. You’re already tight, feeling you without a barrier may make me blow pretty quick…”

He needn't have worried. It did feel different for both of them, and so much better. She could feel every ridge of his cock, and he could feel how wet she really got for him. At the same time, he managed to last even longer.  
Sean lay on top of her, thrusting into her gently, looking into her dark eyes with his baby blues. He closed his eyes, pressing his forehead against hers. “You feel so good, Riley. How do you feel so good?” Riley’s only answer were soft moans, until she said, “Stop for a second, pull out…”   
Sean did immediately. “Did I hurt you, Ri?”  
“Not at all, just a change of position.” She turned over on her stomach, pushing her ass high in the air and spreading her knees apart. Sean didn’t hesitate, sinking himself into her again. At the same time, his heart broke at the scars on her back, this was the first chance he’d gotten to really look at them. Riley spoke quietly, “You’re looking at my scars…”  
“I’m sorry, baby.”  
“It’s ok. They’re impossible to not notice-”  
“No,” he leaned over her back and whispered in her ear. “I’m sorry you went through it. Never again.”  
She turned to look over her shoulder at him. “Just fuck me, Sean.”  
“Anything you want.”  
Placing his hand on her hips, he started to thrust gently, until she told him, “Harder.”  
He gripped her tighter and started to piston into her. It didn’t take long until she was thrusting back against him.  
“Fuck, Riley! You’re so amazing…”  
“Sean, I’m close. Just a little more….”  
A few more thrusts had Riley crying out into the pillow, and as she clamped even tighter around Sean’s dick, he came inside of her, chanting her name over and over again, “Riley...Riley...RILEY!” They collapsed on the bed, Sean rolling off of her. He turned to look at her, and she had a little smile on her face.   
“It’s good to see you smile, pretty girl.”  
“That felt really good.”  
“Yeah it did.”  
Suddenly from somewhere else in the house, Norman called out, “For fuck’s sake, are you guys done? I need some sleep!” In unison, Sean and Riley called back, “Sorry, dad.”

Sean pulled Riley close to him. “We should get some sleep too, Ri.” Her face clouded over. Sean pulled back, making sure of what he was seeing. “What’s wrong? Oh shit, was I too rough?”  
“No, not at all.”  
“Then what?”  
Silence.  
“Come on, Riley. Talk to me. We need to communicate, you know that.”  
“It’s just…..two more days.”  
Ok, now she was making sense. Sean was going to be leaving in two days. She knew he had to for work. He pulled her close again. “I know baby. I don’t want to go, but I have to. Tomorrow we’ll plan your trip out, ok? Where do you want to go when you visit? Disneyland?”  
Her face lit up. “Can we? I haven’t been since I was 8 years old!”  
“Yep. I’ll even buy us mouse ears. What else?”  
They spend the next 45 minutes making plans for Disneyland, Mann’s Chinese Theater, and the Hollywood sign. Riley fell asleep in his arms, and Sean sent up a little prayer. ‘Please, please don’t let me screw this one up. Please let this work out.’


	19. Chapter 19

Sean woke up to an empty bed. Not unusual, Riley usually woke up pretty early, He could hear her talking to Norman in the kitchen, so he put on some pajama pants and shuffled in to get some coffee. Riley looked up and smiled. He always looked like an overgrown toddler when he woke up, rubbing his eyes and yawning, his hair sticking up at crazy angles. “Good morning, sunshine,” she smiled. He poured his coffee and grumbled something unintelligible , kissing Riley on the top of her head, and dropping into a seat next to her.  
Riley turned to Norman and continued the conversation they had been having. “I told you, it’s completely unnecessary.”  
“I know that. But it will give you guys some privacy. Real privacy.”  
Sean had already chugged half of his coffee, and asked, “What are you guys talking about?”  
Riley replied, “He wants to spend the night with Lisa tonight so we can be alone.”  
Sean got a big smile. “Yay!”  
“No ‘yay’,” she scolded him. “This is his house. He shouldn’t have to leave just because we…..”  
“Go at it like rabbits?” Sean added, not very helpfully.  
“LOUD rabbits,” Norman smiled. “Look, I know I don’t have to leave. But Lisa’s been busy all week, this will be the first time I’ve seen her in days. I would rather go over to her place and let you guys stay here, than bring her back.”  
“Afraid we’ll make you look bad?” Sean asked, full of fake innocence.  
“Fuck you, you old geezer.”  
Riley stepped in, “No fighting! Norman, I don’t feel right kicking you out just so me and Sean can….”  
“Violate each other?” Sean added, again not helpfully.  
Norman put his hand on Riley’s. “Sweetie, you're not kicking me out. Sean, can you give us a sec?”  
“Oh. Sure thing. I need a shower anyway.”  
Norman took a deep breath. “Riley, I want to give you two some truly alone time. I know he’s leaving tomorrow. And I know you aren’t sure when you’re going to see him again-.”  
“Two weeks. I’m going out there and he’s taking me to Disneyland and the Hollywood sign and Mann’s Chinese Theater so I can see if my footprints match anybody famous,” she said, smiling, then added, “We’re going to check flights today.”  
Norman ran a hand through his hair. “Riley, I am going over Lisa’s tonight. You and Sean have the house to yourselves, and it’s Saturday, so you have the day off. Why are you arguing about this? I’m trying to do something nice for you….and nice for me, too.”  
“You’re right, boss man. I mean, it would be kinda nice to not worry about keeping you awake with our….’Sean’anigans.”  
“Consider it a little gift from me to you.”  
Riley stood and hugged Norman. “You really are the best boss ever. Can I get a letter of recommendation?”  
“Nope, because I refuse to let you leave.”

She and Sean had spent an hour planning her trip to visit him in 2 weeks. She would only be there for a weekend: she was leaving Georgia early Friday morning with Norman’s blessing, and leaving L.A. late Sunday afternoon. The jet lag was going to be vicious. They decided to put Disneyland on their “later” list for the time being, and instead focus on Mann’s and the Hollywood sign. Disney would be too crowded on a weekend.

Norman wasn’t heading over to Lisa’s until 5:00, so Riley set about making a big pot of spaghetti with her famous homemade sauce and a salad for an early dinner. She told Norman, “Athletes carb load before they run a marathon so they have plenty of energy. I want to make sure you have enough energy for her tonight.”  
Norman packed his bag and before he left, Riley and Sean we’re getting into the hot tub. Norman warned Sean, “Don’t go spooging in my hot tub, brother!” When he left, Riley said, “He didn’t tell me *I* couldn’t spooge in here….”

It was late in the day, and the sun was setting early. Riley stood in the hot tub watching it while Sean stood behind her with his arms around her. He whispered in her ear, “I like this new bikini of yours…” She had bought it for reasons unknown even to her while they were in New York. It was a black string bikini, and the bottoms had ties on each hip, which Sean was fingering absentmindedly. “Really?” Riley asked. “I don’t even know why I bought it, what with my scars.”  
“Your scars are like the rest of you. Perfect. They show everybody that you survived.” He started kissing her shoulder and her neck. He was running his hands along her sides, he just loved touching her. He pulled the string behind her neck slowly, then the one behind her back, pulling off the top of her bathing suit, placing it on the ground near the hot tub, and replacing it with his hands. It was dark out, they had only turned on the pool lights, but not the ones on the patio. The shimmering light gave everything a dreamlike feel. Sean pressed his hard length against her backside. Riley tried to turn, but he wouldn’t let her. “Not yet, pretty girl. We’ve got plenty of time.”  
Slowly, he slid his hands from her breasts, nipples getting hard in the cool air. Sean ran his hands down her stomach, then over her hips, pulling both ties on her bikini bottom. The fabric parted, and he pulled it away from her body, putting it next to the top. Finally he let her turn around. The moonlight and the light from the pool were all he had, and that was all he needed. He could see the goosebumps on her skin, and her cheeks were pink. “You ok, Ri?”  
“Well, not really. Doesn’t seem fair that I’m naked and you’re not,” she said, placing her hands on the waistband of his swim shorts.  
“This is true. Would you mind doing the honors?”  
“Not at all….”  
Riley put one hand into his shorts, and wrapped it around his cock. “Don’t want it to get caught in the waistband,” she whispered.  
“No, we sure don’t…”  
Slowly, she pulled them down under the water, chucking them unceremoniously to the ground after he stepped out of them. Sean took her face in his hands and kissed her. He was never going to get tired of kissing her.  
“Put your arms around my neck,” he told her between kisses. She did as he told her, and he lifted her up, sitting her bare ass on the deck, flush with the edge of the hot tub. She opened her legs as he stood between them, never breaking the kiss. His fingers started stroking her pussy, making her squirm. Sean whispered into her ear hotly, “I love it when you get turned on. You make these sweet little sounds. Do you know how a woman’s pussy changes when she gets turned on?” Riley nodded, unable to speak, and he chuckled, “Of course you do. Your labia swells up, and turns red…” he softly ran his fingers over the lips of her pussy. “Then you get wet, all nice and ready for a hard cock to slide into you…” he gently slid in two fingers and Riley moaned. “And then, your clit swells up and comes out to play, too…” he started rubbing her clit with his thumb.  
“Sean….”  
“Shhh, I’ve got you.” With his free hand, he reached over for the towels they’d brought out and put them behind her back. “Lay back, Riley.”  
As soon as she did, he withdrew his fingers. Before Riley could protest, he replaced his fingers with his tongue. She reached down, running her hands through his hair as he made a feast between her legs. Pushing herself up on her elbows, she looked down and met his eyes. He took his mouth away from her long enough to ask, “Anything wrong?”  
“No. I just want to watch.”  
Sean smiled up at her and said, “Dirty girl,” then got back to business.  
He was glad that she liked the way he went down on her, as before her, it was never his favorite thing. Now though….he could do this every damn day.  
Riley started to rock back against him, eyes closed. He closed his lips around her clit, and said, “Mmmm….”  
“Oh fuck, do that again!”  
He started humming on her clit, pushing his fingers into her again. He could feel her legs starting to shake on his shoulders, so he started humming against her harder. Wrapping his arms tightly around her thighs, he sucked her clit into his mouth, and gently grazed his teeth against it. Her body dropped back onto the deck so hard, he worried that she’d hurt herself, but then she arched up and grabbed his hair, pushing his face against her snatch and grinding against it.   
Riley couldn’t think straight. She could hear a woman’s voice calling out Sean’s name repeatedly, then realized it was her own. As before, she was glad they lived out in the country with no neighbors for a few miles.  
Finally her body slowed down, and she let Sean come up for air, not that he minded. He loved watching her lose herself, and he especially loved that he was the cause of it. She was laying on her back, and opened her eyes, looking up at all the stars. Sean gently removed her legs from his shoulders, and said, “Come back into the water, sweetheart.”  
“It will be a minute. I seem to have lost all ability to move….”  
Sean chuckled, and stood up, picking up Riley in his arms, and bringing her back into the hot water with him. He sat and put her on his lap, pushing her hair back from her face, and she smiled. That smile. She could have anything she wanted if she promised to smile at him like that.  
Riley could feel his naked erection pressing against her bare ass under the water. She wiggled against it, causing Sean to moan, and he said, “No fair.”  
“Why not?”  
“Because you look like you’re ready to sleep.”  
“No, but I’m ready for bed.”  
“What’s the difference?”  
“Norm told you not to spooge in his hot tub. He said nothing about in my bed. Or just in me….”

Sean smiled and they got out of the hot tub. It was a shame, however, to see Riley cover up that body with a towel. As soon as they got back in the house, he yanked it from her body. Sean turned around, saying, “Sean! I…” the words died on her lips when she saw the look on his face. Nothing but pure animal lust. She took a step back and he took one forward, stalking her.  
“Sean, why are you looking at me like that?”  
“Like what?”  
“Like...ever see ‘Wild Kingdom’? When they would show the lions on the savannah, stalking the gazelles to eat them?”  
Sean nodded with a small smile on his face. He was enjoying this, and it seemed that she was, too. It was good to see this playful side of her.  
“Well,” she said, “you look like the lion, and I feel like a gazelle.”  
“I’ve already eaten you….”  
Riley turned and ran down the hallway giggling, with Sean in hot pursuit, both as naked as the day they were born. He caught her in only a few steps, and pressed her naked body against the wall with his own, pinning her arms above her head. He leaned in and kissed her. Gently at first and then more passionately. He softly said, “I’m so sorry for what I put you through…”  
“Sean, it’s ok.”  
“It’s not ok. I was a dick, plain and simple.”  
Riley had a small smile as she told him, “Well you’re my plain and simple dick.”  
Sean chuckled, “Damn right I am! How lucky am I?”

Releasing her wrists, he reached down and gently hiked one of her legs over his hip. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he slid himself into her. When he bottomed out inside of her, she let out a soft sigh.   
“That feel good, Ri? You like my cock inside you?”   
She had her eyes closed, head rested against the wall. “Yeah….”  
“Say it, tell me. Tell me how good I make you feel.”  
She opened her eyes and looked at him. “Wh-what?”  
“Please tell me. Don’t be afraid. Tell me you like my cock inside you.”  
“I do.”  
He was slowly pumping in and out of her. “Say it. Say it for me. Please.”  
“I….I like….”  
He dropped his head close to her ear, whispering, “Please baby.”  
“Oh fuck…...I love your cock inside me, Sean! You feel so fucking good!”  
That was what he wanted to hear. He grabbed her other leg, and she told him, “Sean, no, I’m too heavy!”   
“Trust me.”  
Before she could say anything else, he had hoisted her up by hooking his elbows under her knees. Her back was against the wall, and gravity pulled her down harder on his cock. They both gasped. Sean’s eyes locked on Riley’s. “You ok?” He asked.  
“Yeah. It’s just...so deep. And I don’t want you to hurt yourself because-”  
“Stop. You feel like you weigh about 50 pounds if that. Stop worrying…” He started to thrust into her, using the wall as leverage. “Just feel, babygirl.”  
She turned her head, and saw the full length mirror at the end of the hall. She could see the muscles in Sean’s legs flex as he pushed up into her. His whole body was engaged, god the man was a damn Adonis. He followed her gaze and smiled.  
Pulling away from the wall and holding her easily, he walked closer to the mirror, then pressed her back up against the wall, whispering in her ear, “Keep watching.”  
He started to fuck her again, a little harder this time, and in the mirror, Riley could see his cock sliding in and out of her. She was mesmerized by the way his muscles moved, and how good he felt - not just between her legs, but his skin under her fingertips, his lips on her neck. Turning away from the mirror, she tugged at his hair to pull his face from her neck. He had sweat running down his face, and she wiped it away and kissed him gently. He stilled inside of her and just looked at her.   
“Is...is something wrong? Did I do something wrong?” She whispered, afraid to break the spell.  
“Not at all. Everything is right. You did everything right.”

He pressed his forehead to hers and started fucking her in earnest, earning soft breathy moans from Riley, and it was music to his ears, pushing him closer to his release. “I’m getting close, angel,” he warned her.  
“Yeah, me too.”  
He looked at her and he could tell she was about to go over the edge. Suddenly, her eyes flew open, her box clamped down, and she was a goner. Her legs tensed up, and she was screaming his name, setting him off.  
Sean cried out, “Riley! Oh fuck! Oh Riley….”  
Slowly, he slid them to the floor, still buried inside her. He laid back on the floor, with her on top of him, her head on his chest. They were both panting and sweating. “Damn, girl. The shit you do to me….”  
She looked up at him with a dazzling smile. “Good stuff?”  
“Fuck yeah.”

They laid on the floor for a bit. Riley rolled off of him, and he stood helping her up. “Come on, lady, I need a catnap.”  
“Me too!”


	20. Chapter 20

They walked into the bedroom and fell onto Riley’s bed, exhausted. Riley curled herself into Sean’s side, he pulled the covers up over both of them, and she was out like a light. Sean just watched her for a bit. Battle scarred and beautiful, his pretty girl, in his arms and in his life. He had hinted to her about moving to L.A., and she had said no. He understood. Riley likely wouldn’t be able to get a job where she could actually afford a place to live, rents were crazy high there. He wouldn’t have a problem about her staying with him, that had been more where he was going, but were either of them really ready for that? She was right when she said it was “too soon”. But he was hating the idea of being apart from her for two weeks. He reminded himself that they could Skype, every day if they wanted. But it wasn’t the same as being able to hold her. They would make it work. They had to. Sean snuggled himself closer to Riley and fell asleep.

Riley woke up as the sun was coming up. She slipped out of bed, and parted the curtains. The best part of no neighbors for miles was no one to see her naked at her window. She closed her eyes and leaned on her arms on the windowsill, enjoying the feeling of the warm sunshine on her skin.   
Sean opened his eyes to a lovely sight. Riley naked at the window, with the sunlight streaming all around her. He grabbed his camera phone and took a pic silently. Using his ninja skills, he crept up behind her, and pressed his naked body up against hers. She jumped momentarily then relaxed. He whispered, “Good morning, pretty girl,” softly in her ear. “Seeing you outlined in the sunrise was nice to wake up to.”  
“It’s about 7 in the morning. In about 12 hours, you’ll be leaving.”  
“We’ve got 12 hours. I say we make the most of it, starting now…”  
Riley started to turn and head back to the bed, but Sean wouldn’t let her move, using his body to keep her against the windowsill. “Uh uh. Right here, babygirl. In the sunshine.”  
She gulped. “In the window?”  
“There’s no one to see us.”

Sean ran his big hands down her back, over her tight little ass, and down behind one leg, telling her, “Lift up your leg, put your knee on the windowsill.”  
She did and told him, “I feel like a dog peeing on a hydrant…”  
Slowly, Sean slid his hard length into her, and asked, “Still feel like that?”  
“No…..”

Bending his knees to be down at her height, he started to slowly pump into her, his hands outside of hers on the windowsill. He reached down and lifted up her ass cheek and was rewarded with an epic view of his cock sliding in and out, slickened by the wetness from her tight cunt. “Fuck, babygirl, so good.”  
Riley started to bend her knees to push back against him. She braced her hands at the sides of the windowsill. Sean put his hands next to hers, and she moved her hands onto his, curling her fingers. Taking his hands off the window, he wrapped both of their arms around her middle, lifting her off her feet with his cock still impaling her, and bending her over the footboard of her bed. “Hold on tight, angel.” She grabbed onto it, and he started pounding into her so hard, her feet were coming off the ground, and she still cried out, “Harder!” A few more hard thrusts from Sean and he was blindsided by his own orgasm. His hands gripped the footboard tightly as he unloaded into Riley. At first he felt like a complete dick for not getting her off, but halfway through it, he felt Riley tighten up around him, and in his haze he saw her back arch as she called out his name.

Riley collapsed over the footboard as Sean’s softening cock slid out of her. He held himself up off of her so he wouldn’t crush her as he caught his breath. This girl….damn. He didn’t know how he was going to last two weeks without her. He put his hands on her waist, “Come lay down with me.” They fell into bed. “Let’s take a nap, Riley.”  
“No! What if we oversleep? I don’t want to lose any time with you!”  
Sean grabbed his phone. “It’s 7:45, I’m going to set the alarm for 10. Just a couple of hours, ok?”  
“Ok.” She snuggled back into his side.   
All Sean knew was that when he was with her, it felt like he was home.

Sean woke when his alarm went off, but Riley wasn’t in bed with him. He threw on his pajama pants and walked out the door. Norman wasn’t home yet, still banging away on Lisa, likely. He heard the shower in the hall bathroom that was considered to be Riley’s, and quietly let himself in. Her bathroom had no bathtub, but did have a good sized shower stall, with clear glass doors. Closing the door quietly, Sean watched her. Riley had her arms against the wall supporting her and facing the spray. Her head was back, eyes closed, and the water was hitting her chest and sliding down her body. He briefly considered going back to the bedroom to get his phone and taking a picture, but Riley must have felt him watching her. She opened her eyes and turned to him.  
“Hi.”  
Sean blatantly checked her out, then said, “Hi yourself.”  
Chucking the sleep pants, he walked over to the shower and opened the door. Stepping in, he closed it behind him. “Need some help washing your back?”  
“I already got my back.”  
“Okay...how about washing your front?”  
“Ha ha.”  
She turned to face him, and he put his arms around her. “Solve a mystery for me. Why do girls looks so damn good when they’re wet? Guys look like drowned rats, but you girls look fucking hot. Some much hotter than others….” He leaned in for a kiss but she pulled away. He frowned at her, but she turned them so Sean’s back was against the spray then got on her knees.  
“Just a little something for you to remember me by,” she told him.  
“I don’t need - oh FUCK!” He exclaimed as she took him into her mouth. He realized that yes, having something to remember her by was a fine idea indeed. Looking down at her, he watched her slowly work him deeper into her mouth. As he hit the back of her throat, she gagged and pulled away. “Riley, it’s ok,” he told her. “You don’t have to have me down your throat to make me feel good, I think that’s obvious.”  
“I just want to be good at it.”  
“Baby, you are AMAZING at it, trust me. Only go as far as you’re comfortable. If I think I’m hurting you, I’m not going to enjoy it,” he pushed a wet lock of hair off of her forehead, “ok?”  
She nodded and smiled and did the same thing she’d done before, wrapping her hand around the base and twisting it. He’d had women deep throat him before, but the suction of her mouth combined with the twisting of her hand was a totally different experience. Riley seemed to know just how much to squeeze without being too tight or loose.  
Those big dark eyes of hers looking up at him, the water sliding down her skin, the feeling of being in her mouth, of being WITH her...he felt his orgasm barrelling down on him. “Riley...baby...I’m gonna cum! Please don’t stop!” She sped up just enough that he was shooting his cum down her throat before his next breath, and she swallowed every drop. Sean sagged back against the wall as Riley rose, and he grabbed her and pulled her to him sliding his tongue into her mouth, and tasting himself. Wrapping his arms around her tightly, he didn’t want to let her go. She gently pulled away and picked up the bar of soap and the washcloth, and slowly started bathing Sean. Neither said a word, but his blue eyes tracked her every move. He’d showered with women before, but not like this. She slowly soaped up his arms, chest, and stomach. Then, very gently, his cock and balls, down his legs, then lifting one foot and then the other. As he turned the front of his body towards the shower to rinse off, she soaped up the backs of his legs, his ass, and his back and shoulders. He turned his back to the spray to rinse off and she told him, “Get your hair wet so I can wash it.” He didn't question it, just tilted his head back in the spray, turned his back to her so she could wash his hair, then rinsed it out. As they climbed out, she grabbed a towel and began drying him off. That was when he stopped her. “Riley-girl, what’s going on?”  
“You washed my hair.”  
“I washed your hair. I didn’t wash your body and then dry you off.”  
“You washed my hair and blow dried it all pretty. I wanted to do something nice for you. And you would have washed and dried my body if I’d have let you, and you know it,” she smiled.   
Well, she was right on that one.

After they got dressed, they went outside. Norman came home, looking thoroughly...satisfied. Walking into the kitchen he looked out the sliding glass doors. Riley and Sean were on the deck sharing a chaise lounge. He watched them for a few minutes. He really hoped Sean was serious about her. He didn’t think she could handle going through him abandoning her again. What Norman couldn’t see was Sean’s hand down the front of Riley’s shorts, and his finger pulsing firmly on her clit.  
He whispered in her ear, “Gotta be quiet, baby. Norman’s home. Need to cum for me before he comes out here. Cum for me Riley, come on girl….”  
Riley was biting her lip and trying to keep as still as possible, Sean was making her feel so good. He suddenly felt her tense up, let out a soft moan and a few shakes, then go limp and sigh. He rubbed his fingers gently along her slit, collecting the wetness there, and licked his fingers, holding her close. “That’s my girl,” he told her stroking her hair. “My sweet, sweet girl.”

Norman grabbed three beers and headed outside. He handed them each one and sat next to them. All three were silent. Norman looked over at Riley through his sunglasses. She had her head tucked under Sean’s chin, with a sad faraway look on her face. She was hurting, and it killed him. Riley was his friend, and he never liked to see his friends upset. Looking at Sean, he didn’t look as sad as she did, but he didn’t look happy, either. Was Sean being honest? Did he care enough for Riley to not freak out and take off? Norman really hoped so. He wished he could trust him more. Sean was going to have to prove himself. Finally, Norman spoke. “What time's your flight?”  
Sean said, “9:00. I have to leave here at 7:00 just to be sure. Atlanta traffic sucks.” He dropped a kiss on top of Riley’s head.  
“It’s already 5:00.”  
“I know, but it’s not like I have to pack. I figured I could leave the clothes I bought here, like I used to. Before I was an asshole.”  
Norman chuckled at that. Yep, Sean knew he’d fucked up before. “Yeah, that’s no problem.”  
Riley spoke up, “I should go make dinner.” She moved to get up, but Norman told her, “Nope. I already ordered pizza.”  
She smiled at him. “Thanks boss.”

During dinner, Sean and Riley told Norman about her plans to fly out in two weeks. Her ticket had been bought, and she was truly excited. She talked about the footprint’s in front of Mann’s Chinese Theater, wondering if her hands would match anybody’s. “I should see how my leg measures up to Betty Grable’s! She did a leg print back then!”  
Sean looked at her and said, “Betty Grable had the most beautiful legs in the world! Until you came along….” Norman watched as Riley blushed.

At 6:55, Norman asked to speak to Sean privately for a moment before he left. “Just reminding you, DO NOT fuck this up. She deserves better than that.”  
Sean looked at Norman. “Riley deserves better than me. But I can’t seem to live without her. And for some lucky reason, she’s willing to give me another chance. Don’t think I don’t understand this. Like I told you, I’m crazy about her. I am dreading being without her for two weeks. When I get home I’m going to check my frequent flier miles and my schedule and see if I can get her to California or get my ass to Georgia a little more often. I don’t want to leave as it is. But I committed to a project.”  
Norman knew that once Sean signed a contract, he didn’t back out. “I know. Just don’t get scared this time. Don’t run away. See it through.”  
“As long as she wants me, I’m here. It will be over when she says so.”  
Norman clapped him on the back. 

The three of them walked out the door to Sean’s rental car. Riley started to sniffle. “Oh, baby,” Sean said, putting his arms around her. “Please don’t cry. Everything is ok. You’ll see. These two weeks will fly by like nothing. We can talk on Skype every single night, I promise. Ok?”  
Riley nodded, but tears continued to fall and she continued to sniffle. Sean looked at Norman. Neither of them knew what to do.  
Riley suddenly spoke up. “Will you text me when you get home?”  
“Sweetie, it will be something like 2 a.m. here.” Sean told her.  
“Yes, but I’ll see it when I wake up. Then I’ll know you made it home safely. I won’t worry.”  
“Ok, I promise you I will text you as soon as I walk in the door. And we’ll Skype tomorrow night. I won’t be home until 6, so it will be about 9 here. Is that ok?”  
She nodded. She had stopped crying but he could see her lip quivering. Sean took her face in his hands and kissed her. “No more tears, Riley. I am NOT abandoning you. I’m not leaving you. You believe me don’t you?”  
Another nod from her. “I just don’t want you to go.” Sean started to speak, but she stopped him. “I understand that you have to. I know you have responsibilities. But it doesn’t mean I have to like it.”  
Sean chuckled at that. She was stubborn, for sure. Hugging and kissing her again, he just said, “Two weeks, angel.” He hugged Norman, got into his car and backed out into the road. As he drove away, he saw Riley in his rear view mirror. She just started bawling. He saw Norman hold her in his arms. He damn near said ‘fuck it’ and turned around, but he knew he couldn’t. He had a good reputation for being reliable, and he wanted to keep it. But he definitely brushed away a few tears of his own. He spoke out loud, although nobody could hear him but himself. “Two weeks. It’s not that long. Just two weeks, baby.”


	21. Chapter 21

Riley and Norman sat on the couch to watch some TV, but he could see she wasn’t paying attention. He knew her heart was breaking. About an hour and a half after Sean left, her phone pinged with a text. It was from Sean and simply said, “Just turned in my rental car, waiting for my flight. Miss you already, pretty girl.” She read it out loud to Norman and her tears started flowing again. “Norman, I miss him so much!”  
“Text him. Let him know.”  
She did, and they texted back and forth until it was time for him to board his plane. Right before she headed to bed, he pinged her one last time. “Don’t know if you’re still awake. Check out my Instagram when you get a chance.” She checked and Sean had posted a selfie of him on the plane looking sad. He captioned it, “On my way back to L.A. Missing a Georgia peach.” She showed Norman with a big smile and asked, “Do you think he means me?”  
“I sure as hell hope he doesn’t mean me!”  
She texted him, “Georgia peach, huh? Norman said he misses you, too.”  
Almost immediately he responded, “Ha ha. Also, GO TO BED!”  
Riley did as she was told. For the first time in a long time (except for when Sean was there), she didn’t sleep with the light on.

Waking up, Riley checked her phone. There was a text from Sean at 2:30 a.m. saying, “Just got home, heading to bed. Hope I dream about you, pretty girl.” Her heart melted. How would she last two whole weeks? She texted him back even though she knew he wouldn’t answer as he was probably still asleep. She shuffled into the kitchen to make herself some coffee. Norman was already up, drinking coffee and reading the paper. “Morning, Ri,” he said.  
“Hey.”  
“Did….did he text you when he got home?”  
“Yeah, he did,” she gave a small smile and sat down. “Two weeks never seemed so far.”  
“Maybe you’re looking at it wrong. Technically, it’s LESS than two weeks. You’re going on a Friday. You’re closer than you think. Technically it’s 11 days. Tomorrow it will be 10. Instead of thinking, ‘I can’t see Sean for 11 more days’, try ‘Only 11 more days until I see Sean.’ It’s not 2 weeks. It’s 11 days.”  
Riley thought about it. “Hey, yeah. It does sound better. Only 11 more days until I see Sean, not 14!”  
“See?”  
Walking over to Norman’s side of the table, she gave him a big kiss on the cheek. He laughed and asked, “What was that for?”  
“For being such a good friend.”

Riley and Sean Skyped every night for at least two hours like clockwork. Norman was pretty sure Sean was saying naughty things as Riley would listen with headphones and he would hear her giggling in her room. It was good that she was so happy.  
She taught Sean what Norman had told her about how to look at the time they had to wait. Every night as soon as she got online, he’d tell her, “Only _____ more days until I see my Riley-girl!”

When she went to her therapy appointment, Norman reminded her to tell her doctor about being gone the following Friday. He didn’t want her to miss an appointment unless it was ok. She came home quietly after her appointment. He didn’t have to film that day, so he was home when she walked in.  
“Riley? You ok?”  
Riley didn’t look upset or angry, just…different. “I told her I would be gone on Friday and asked her if I should come in Thursday instead.”  
“What did she say?”  
“Well…she said I’ve done very well in our sessions. So well, that she thinks I don’t need to come in every week any more. She said she thinks it’s time to start weaning me, for lack of a better phrase.”  
“What does that mean?”  
“She wants to change to every two weeks for a month or two. Then every 3 weeks. Then once a month. Then I’m on my own. She said that the fact that I’m trying to move forward is good.”  
“Move forward? How? Dating Sean?”  
“No…..I’ve been talking to her a bit about leaving here. Before you get upset, I still haven’t decided anything. I just brought it up with her to see if it would be safe if I decided to go.”  
Norman stood there with his arms crossed. “Oh really? And what did the good doctor say? That she thinks you should leave? Because fuck that noise.”  
“Norman, no. She didn’t say that. Jesus, I knew I shouldn’t say anything.” She walked down the hall to her room and sat on the bed, and he followed. “I’m not going to discuss this with you if you are going to be pissed.”  
“You’re my best friend and I don’t want you to leave, ok?”  
“I get that. But you won’t even let me finish what I was saying.”  
Norman ran a hand through his shaggy hair. She was right. “I’m sorry. What did she say?”  
“She said that the fact that I was ready to move on with my life was a good sign. From our talks, she knows I’m not running away, I’m just ready to close the door on what happened to me. I’m never going to get away from it or forget it. I’ll have scars on my body for the rest of my life. I’ll see them every day. But….I’m ok with it. I can’t change it. But I’m ready for what comes next. That’s why she wants to kind of wean me off of therapy. To help me slowly go forward. I may stay in Senoia, Norman. I like it here. But I can’t work for you and live in your house forever. But it doesn’t mean I’m leaving. It doesn’t mean I’d stop being your friend. No matter where I go or what I end up doing, you are always going to be my friend, Norman. My BEST friend. I wouldn’t abandon you.”  
Damn. Riley knew him better than he gave her credit for. He hated Hollywood because you’d spend months on set with people who you thought were your friends, but once the movie wrapped, you’d be lucky if they ever gave you a second glance. They abandoned you so easily. Sean had been one of the few people who stuck around. And Riley had never given two shits for the fact that he was “famous”. She treated him the same as everyone else. He sighed.   
“Dammit, Ri. I really don’t want to lose you.”  
She walked over to him and put her arms around his waist. “You aren’t losing me. You won’t lose me. We’re friends, and that means something to me.”

Riley spent the days before she left cooking a few extra things for Norman to eat while she was gone. She didn’t like him eating take out if he didn’t have to. He told her she didn’t have to, but she did it anyway. Thursday afternoon he told her, “I’m taking you to the airport and picking you up, too.”  
“You don’t have to, I can drive Herbie. It won’t cost too much to leave him parked there.”  
“Absolutely not. I’m worried about you being upset or tired when you come home. In any case, you’ll likely be in no condition to drive. I’ll drop you at the gate, and when I pick you up, I’ll park and then you can text me once you get outside and I’ll swing over and get you.” It was never a good idea for him to get out of the car, he tended to get mobbed.  
“Thanks, boss man. You’re probably right.”  
She and Sean Skyped early on Thursday so she could try to get some sleep. She was taking a 9 a.m. flight. She’d arrive at LAX at 10 a.m. California time, but it was a 5 hour flight. The time change was so confusing.  
Sean had the biggest smile on Thursday night. “I can’t believe I get to see you tomorrow! I can’t wait, pretty girl.”  
“So you have my flight itinerary and everything?”  
“Yep. I’ll meet you at the luggage carousel, baby. See you tomorrow.”  
“Yes! Bye.”  
“Bye. Get some sleep, girl! Enjoy your flight tomorrow!”

She thought she wouldn’t be able to sleep, but she did. She woke at 5:30 to get ready, and they left the house at 7:00 a.m. When Norman dropped her off, he couldn’t get out of the car, so she gave him a hug and kiss, and gave her suitcase to the curbside check in. She went through security without incident and went to the gate to check in. When she gave the woman her ticket, she double checked the computer and said, “Oh, I see you upgraded two days ago to first class.”  
“What? No. I got business class.”  
“Not according to my computer. Riley Maxwell, first class.”  
“Wait a minute. Can you see who paid for it? Because I didn’t.”  
The woman clicked through her computer, then told her, “Ah, here it is. Upgrade two days ago to first class….paid for by S. Flanery.”  
That adorable bastard upgraded her to first class. The attendant continued, “And your flight back is first class as well.”  
Never in her life had Riley flown first class. She’d only flown a handful of times, and she had always flown coach. Buying business class was as much as she was willing to splurge. And Sean went behind her back, knowing she’d never accept it.

Riley enjoyed the first class flight. She got a real meal and champagne, instead of a bag of peanuts and a soda. And her seat had plenty of legroom and actually reclined, allowing her to get some more sleep. At first she felt bad for wanting to sleep instead of “enjoying” her first class flight, but she knew Sean had done it so she would be comfortable. And better for her to sleep on the flight than sleep all day when she was with him and lose time.

She slept for 3 hours of the five hour flight, being woken by a flight attendant just a few minutes before they began their descent. Riley stomach was full of butterflies, knowing she would see Sean soon. On their descent they announced the time and which luggage carousel to go to. First class was allowed to leave first, and Riley found herself rushing through the terminal following the signs to the luggage carousel. She had to take an escalator down the stairs, and there, at the bottom, stood Sean. He looked gorgeous, wearing a white t shirt and blue jeans and those damn cowboy boots of his. He stood with his hands in his pockets, and when she came into view, he got a huge smile on his face. Riley couldn’t help herself, she ran the rest of the way down the escalator, and right into his arms, jumping on him and wrapping her arms and legs around him, and laying a passionate kiss on him. For few moments, the noisy, crowded airport seemed to disappear, and it was just the two of them. Finally breaking the kiss, he set Riley down and took her face in his hands, telling her, “I can’t believe you’re finally here. Seemed to take forever.” Then with a little smile he added, “Did you have a nice flight?”  
“Yes I did, Mr. First Class. Why did you do that?”  
“Because I knew you wouldn’t. And because I knew if you had an actual reclining seat, that you could rest if you wanted to.” He took her by the hand and they headed for the luggage carousel. “Did you get anything to eat? Are you hungry? Thirsty? Are you tired?”  
She laughed at his mother henning. “Yes, they fed me a lovely meal and champagne, and I slept for three more hours. And thank you for the upgrade. I’ve never flown first class before, it was nice!”  
The luggage carousel finally started up and in a few minutes her suitcase came. Ever the gentleman, Sean carried her bag with one hand and held her hand with the other. “So,” he began, “if you aren’t hideously tired, we can drop your stuff at home, then go to Mann’s. Since it’s still early, it won’t be too crowded, then tomorrow we could go to the Hollywood sign. Unless you wanted to do it differently.”  
“Nope, that’s fine.”

They went out to the lot to Sean’s car. He put her suitcase in the trunk, then opened her door for her, kissing her again before letting her get in. Then he hustled around to his side, climbed in, and leaned over to kiss Riley again before putting on his seatbelt, and starting the car. He held her hand as he drove, even as he shifted gears, pointing out landmarks as they drove: the Capitol Records building, Hollywood Boulevard, the Hollywood sign up on the hill. They drove up a quiet street with houses spaced quite a bit apart, finally pulling up to a split level home, with Sean saying, “Here we are.”  
It really was a beautiful house, located on a good sized bit of land, the nearest neighbors a football field away. “This is where you live?”  
“Yep,” he said, pulling her suitcase out of the trunk.  
“All by yourself?”  
“Yep.”  
“Don’t you get lonely?”  
He unlocked and opened the front door before answering. “I didn’t used to. Then I met a really cute girl in Georgia. And once I was away from her, I got really lonely.”  
“You know, it’s only been a few weeks, but you look much better than you did when you first visited. Even after just that week, you looked better.”  
“Yeah, everyone told me I looked human again,” he was leading the way up the stairs. “What can I say, when I was away from you I wasn’t eating or sleeping. All I did was think of you and look at the pictures of you.”  
“Pictures?”  
“Yeah,” Sean put her suitcase by the closet and sat on the bed. “Come here, I’ll show you.” He sat on the bed and scrolled through all of the pictures of her. The one from when she worked at the bar. The one from when they went swimming together and she fell asleep on the pool float. The one from Lauren’s wedding. The ones he got from the background at Norman’s art show. And last, the one of her naked at the window with the sunlight streaming around her. At first she said, “That’s not me!”  
“Yes it it, Ri. Look at the window. That’s your window. That’s your body. Why would you think that isn’t you?”  
“Because….because I thought it was some girl with a really nice figure….”  
“It is. You’ve got a great figure, baby.”  
“I didn’t know that I looked like that.”  
“You do. You’re smart and kind and beautiful. Always my pretty girl.”  
“That first picture was from when I worked at the bar.”  
“Yeah. I liked you back then. I’ve liked you for a long time.”  
“Why didn’t you say something?”  
“I didn’t think you liked me. You were different from the girls I usually met. You didn’t care if I was in some movies. You talked to ME, not an actor. You weren’t a fangirl. You treated me like Sean. I liked that, but you gave me so much shit sometimes that I thought you hated me. Because yes, sometimes I was an asshole. I wasted so much time, and I’m so sorry about that.”  
Riley smiled. “We aren’t wasting time anymore. We’re making it work.”  
“Damn right.”

Sean leaned over and kissed her, pushing her back on the bed. Suddenly he stopped, saying, “Sorry. I promised you Mann’s Chinese Theater.” Riley grabbed him and pulled him back to her, telling him, “That place has been around for almost 90 years. It will wait a few more hours. But I won’t.”  
“Good thing. I’ve been hard since you jumped on me at the airport, lady.”  
He started to kiss her and pulled off her shirt. “God I missed you,” he mumbled against her lips. Riley ran her fingers through his hair as she pulled his shirt off, only breaking the kiss long enough to pull it over his head, then they were joined at the lips once again. She kicked off her shoes and started to undo her pants when Sean stopped her. “Let me,” he said.  
He unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans and she lifted her hips so he could pull them off. He looked at her, laying on his bed, finally. She was wearing a white lacy bra and matching lacy panties, like she was so sweet and innocent. He pulled off his cowboy boots and quickly shucked his jeans. Looking at her, he raised an eyebrow and looked back at his cowboy boots. She laughed, “No, Sean Patrick, you are NOT fucking me with your boots on!”  
“Not THIS time,” he told her. “I like the white underwear. Very innocent.”  
He reached behind her back with one hand and expertly unhooked her bra, pulling the straps down off her arms, and tossing it on the floor. Sean ducked his head down to her glorious tits, running his tongue over one nipple, then the other, listening to her breath catch. Riley could feel his hard on through his boxer briefs up against her hip and squirmed against it, making Sean gasp.  
Standing up, he slid her panties down her legs and took off his own. “You ready for me, Riley?” He gave his hard cock a few strokes as he stood looking down at her.   
“Hell yeah. Been ready since the last time we fucked.” Sean raised his eyebrows at that. He laid next to her, running his hands up her body. She was so soft. He ran a fingertip over her slit, nice and wet for him. Over one nipple and then the other. She whimpered, “Sean....” Sean smiled, “Ok, baby.” He positioned himself between her legs and entered her smoothly. He just held himself there for a few minutes with his head buried in her neck, afraid he’d blow if he moved. How was she always so fucking tight? This girl was amazing.   
Slowly, he started to pump in and out of her. He pulled back to look at her, and felt everything change. Unbeknownst to him, she felt it, too. This could work. This would work. This was everything. Burying his face back in her neck he began thrusting into her. He needed her. Needed to be with her. Needed to be inside of her. Whenever he could. He was whispering into her ear, “Oh Riley….my god….Riley….”  
Riley was terrified and excited all at once. She didn’t want to say anything, but good lord she felt like she didn’t have a future if he wasn’t in it. She whispered back, “We’ll make it work. We’ll make it.”  
Speeding up he pulled back to look at her again. “Yes. We will,” he said nodding, and she nodded back.  
The only sound in the room was their heavy breathing and the sound of their bodies connecting.

“Sean! I’m close….gonna cum…”  
“Cum for me, baby. I wanna see it, wanna hear it…”

Riley’s back arched, and Sean ducked his head, catching one of her nipples in his mouth. She was bucking and calling his name, digging her nails into his back, her legs wrapped around him, squeezing his dick so hard, he thought she might push him out. Sean was trying to hold off his orgasm just so he could watch hers.  
“SEAN! Oh fuck! Oh Sean! Please cum in me, I want to feel it.”  
When she said that, he was a goner.   
He thrust into her a few more times, then he was shooting inside of her. And Riley loved watching him cum as well. Buried as deep into her as he could, back arched and head back, all of those beautiful muscles of his tensed up, then dropping his head down to look at her like she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.  
Sean placed a gentle kiss on Riley’s lips. He rolled on his back, pulling her with him, her head on his chest. “Fuck, Riley. What are we going to do?”  
Looking up at him she just said, “We’re going to make it work. We have to.”  
“Yeah we do. And we will.”


	22. Chapter 22

Now that they’d gotten a good, thorough fucking out of their system, Sean kept his promise and they went to Mann’s. They parked a few blocks away and walked hand in hand. Riley’s excited squeal when they finally got there made it all worth it. She started running back and forth, zigzagging across the forecourt. “Aw look, Shirley Temple’s little bare feet! Hey look, Mary Pickford! Oh wow, Carmen Miranda! Hey look, Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell!” She crouched down, placing her hands in Marilyn’s prints, frowning when her own were bigger. She sidestepped over to Jane Russell. “Sean look! My hands are the same size as Jane Russell!” He came over and looked, telling her, “I’ll be damned, they are!” Riley giggled and whispered, “Her boobs were WAY bigger though!” Sean whispered back, “I like yours, they defy gravity!”  
Sean walked over and was looking at some of the prints. Suddenly he said, “Hey Ri, come over here.”  
He was standing in front of the famous Betty Grable leg print. “Didn’t you want to see how you measured up?”  
She had put on shorts due to the nice weather, so it worked out perfectly. Sitting on the warm concrete with Sean watching, she almost reverently put her right leg up against the leg print, lining up her toes with where Betty had placed hers over 70 years before. Riley’s leg was longer and leaner. Hearing a sound she looked up. Sean had taken a photo. “Told you your legs were better,” he said smiling as he helped her up.   
“Mine aren’t better. Just different.”  
“Yours are leaner.”  
“Yeah, but back then, my legs would have been considered ‘skinny’. Girls back then were bigger. Curvier. Sexier.”  
“I don’t know,” Sean said. “I think you’re pretty damn sexy.”

Riley walked around comparing her hands to a few others. Sean was leaning against the wall, looking at his phone and he chuckled. He had sent the photo of Riley to Norman. Norman had said, “Yes Sean, we all know you like Riley’s legs! BTW, Lisa says to tell her that she knew Riley’s legs were better.”  
“See?” Sean told her. “Even Lisa knows your legs were better!”  
“Oh stop it!” Riley laughed as they were on the way back to the car.  
They got in, and she asked, “Can we drive up to the Hollywood sign now?”  
“You don’t want to wait until tomorrow?”  
“If we go today, then we have all day tomorrow and Sunday to ourselves….you know, to be alone…”  
“We are SO going right now,” he said, throwing the car into gear.

They drove up the hill to where the tourists go to see it. Riley was disappointed to see a chain link fence around it, along with a security guard. She had told Sean she wanted to “hug the H”. Instead, she had her face pressed to the chain link, staring at it forlornly. So close and yet so far. She politely asked the security guard, “Can I go in? Just for a second?”  
“Sorry lady. People have vandalized it too many times.”  
He was right, the backs of the letters were covered in graffiti. But her luck was about to change. The security guard was eyeing Sean, so Sean finally asked him, “Is something wrong?”  
The security guard looked a bit embarrassed, but finally said, “Weren’t you in that Boondock Saints movie? Didn’t you play Connor?”  
“Yep, I sure did.”  
“That’s one of my favorite movies! Can I get a picture with you?”  
“Tell you what, my lady friend here came all the way from Georgia just to hug the letter H in the sign. You let us in so I can take a picture of her doing that, and I’ll take as many pictures with you as you want.”  
The guard didn’t even think twice, opening the fence and letting them in, telling them, “Just hurry up before someone else sees.”  
They ran in, Riley threw her arms as far as she could around the H, Sean snapped a pic and they came out. It took them maybe 15 seconds. The big smile on Riley’s face was worth it.  
The guard took half a dozen pics with Sean, and then they were heading home. Sean’s phone pinged with a message, and he gave it to Riley to check. She started laughing. He had sent the pic to Norman, but it looked like she was just hugging a wall. Norman had messaged him, “Dude, what the fuck is she hugging?” She responded back, “Hey, this is Riley. I was hugging the H in the Hollywood sign!”

They stopped at a grocery store to pick up some stuff for dinner. Sean wanted to grill some burgers and she was fine with it. When they got back to the house, they went out back with a couple of beers. Sean had a pool and hot tub, so Riley went and changed into her suit. When she walked out, Sean asked her, “Are you trying to make me burn the food?”  
“I thought you liked my bikini.”  
“I do. A LOT. I also have some very fond memories of removing that bikini,” he took a step toward her.  
“Stay right there, mister. You promised me an epic cheeseburger and you’d better deliver. Do you even know what you’re doing over there?” She cocked an eyebrow at him.   
He smiled and replied, “Fuck you, I know shit.”

Turns out Sean DID know shit, at least when it came to grilling hamburgers. Riley ate two of them because they were so good, then laid on a lounge chair patting her full little belly. Sean went inside to change into his swim trunks, and came back out, picking Riley up off the chair like she weighed nothing. “Sean! What are you doing?”  
“Carrying a very sexy girl into my hot tub so I can do very naughty things to her,” he said, stepping down into the water with her. “It’s my hot tub, and I can spooge in it if I want to!”

As soon as her set her in the water, she yanked down his trunks, smirking at him. He opened his mouth to speak, but she put a finger to his lips, shaking her head. Then she patted the edge of the hot tub, for him to sit down. He hopped up on the edge, trunks around his knees, and she pulled them off, throwing them on the deck. Sean was already hard, she had that effect on him. He patted his lap with a smile, as if telling her to hop on, but she shook her head no, making him pout. Wrapping her hand around his cock, Riley made his pout disappear. She stroked him slowly as the sun set, his body casting a shadow over her. Reaching one hand up to his neck, she pulled him closer to her for a kiss.   
Letting him go and dipping her head, she slid his cock into her mouth, swallowing the small bit of pre-cum. Sean couldn’t help himself, breathing out, “Ohhh, Riley….” He leaned back on his elbows to get a better view of him sliding in and out of her mouth, and her eyes locked onto his.  
Riley held him in her mouth, unmoving, but he could feel her very talented tongue swirling and sliding along the underside of his cock, and he let out a loud moan. He saw her eyes dart from side to side, and he said softly, “Don’t worry, sweetie. I’m at the end of the road, the neighbors are too far to hear, and they can’t see us back here, either.”  
Leaning back on one elbow, her used his other hand to pull her hair back from her face. Letting him slip from her mouth, she ran the tip of her tongue up along the underside of his unit, then flicked it back and forth against the slit, causing him to buck up against her mouth. Riley smiled up at him, then slid just the head in, applying just the right amount of suction as she slid her mouth down him agonizingly slow. “Riley, you’re killing me,” Sean whimpered. She continued her slow sliding up and down for a few minutes, with Sean trying to push into her mouth faster. Every time he bucked up, she went up with him, so he got no friction. Watching him, she could see the desperation on his face. “Babygirl, please….”   
Riley took her mouth off of him long enough to innocently ask, “Please what? What do you want?”  
Poor Sean was gritting his teeth and replied, “Wanna cum…..NEED to cum….please…”  
Riley sucked him back into her mouth at top speed, head bobbing, hand around the base twisting. Before she could even blink, he was shooting his cum down her throat. She swallowed greedily, some spilling out over her lips. She stood to wipe her mouth, but before she could, Sean’s mouth was open on hers, licking it off, shocking the hell out of her. She looked at him wide-eyed as he gently sucked on her bottom lip and pulled away. One hand still tangled in her hair, the other came up to cup her chin. “Can’t expect you to swallow if I wouldn’t, right?”

He slid back into the water with her and held her close, running his hands over her scarred back. He then said softly, “Doesn’t seem fair that I’m naked and you’re not…” He started untying her bathing suit top, but paused when she turned her big eyes on him. Her eyes absolutely killed him. They say eyes are the windows to the soul, and it was true with her. He could see her looking up at him with more trust than anybody ever had. All he could think was that she deserved so much better than him….but he wasn’t about to give her up. He was going to earn that trust.   
Riley’s face got concerned. “Sean, are you ok?” He realized he’d stopped in the middle of taking off her top.   
“Absolutely perfect, baby. Just got distracted by the pretty girl in front of me.” She blushed, and he loved it. He finished untying her top and took it off, then slowly pulled the strings on her hips, untying the bottoms. He pulled her close and held her tightly. He didn’t want to let her go. He didn’t want her to go back to Georgia. She belonged HERE, with HIM. But he knew it was too soon.   
Sean led her back to the stairs leading down into the hot tub, sitting down on one with his erection bobbing up above the water, making Riley giggle and ask, “Already?”  
“Yep. Like a damn teenager around you.”  
She turned so her back was to him, positioning herself over his lap, and slowly lowered herself onto him, sighing. Sean put his hands on her hips as she started to ride him. He watched as she grabbed on to the little handrail for leverage and leaned forward, hitting just the right spot. With her at that angle, he had a perfect view of himself sliding in and out of her, along with the great view that was her ass.  
“Stop, babygirl.”  
Looking back over her shoulder, Riley asked, “Why? Did I do something wrong?”  
“No, sweetheart. I want you to turn around. I love seeing your face when you cum.”  
Riley lifted herself off of him, turned, and lowered herself back down. Sean put his hands on her hips and guided her up and down, very slowly. Her knees were on the stairs and she put her hands on his shoulders, and leaned in to kiss him. When she leaned back, he went with her. He needed to feel her close to him, he didn’t know why...not yet he didn’t. He had an inkling, and he pushed it away. Too soon. Dropping his forehead to her chest, he breathed out, “Oh, Riley….”  
“I need to go faster, Sean, please…”  
Pulling his head off her chest, he told her, “Go ahead, baby.”

 

Riley didn’t need to be told twice. She started riding him hard, the water around their hips splashing up. Sean was mesmerized, he really did love watching her get herself off, she would just lose herself in it. He watched the water splash up and drip off of her hard nipples, and it was one of the sexiest things he’d ever seen.   
She started to really grind on him, giving off little whimpers, trying hard to be quiet. He pulled her close and said hotly in her ear, “Don’t you dare be quiet, little girl. I want to hear it, I want my neighbors to hear it!”  
“No...no…”  
Sean started to pulse his finger against her clit, causing her to gasp, and growled, “Yes! Yes!”  
Riley put her own hand over her mouth in an attempt to stifle herself, but quick as a flash, Sean grabbed both wrists and pinned them behind her back with one hand. Riley moaned out, “Oh fuck yes!” That definitely piqued Sean’s interest - was Riley into modest amounts of kink? But they were more pressing matters at hand, namely their orgasms were barreling down on both of them. She began her telltale shaking and quivering, and he sat up nose to nose with her, and demanded, “Scream my name, little girl, SCREAM IT!”  
Riley threw her head back, screaming, “SEAN SEAN SEAN! YES!” Her back was arched, head back, breasts thrust forward, with her wrists still behind her back as he unloaded into her, yelling out, “YES, babygirl, YES!” He came so hard, his vision went white, and he wondered briefly if he was going blind. He closed his eyes for a minute, and when he opened them again, he was fine. What was this girl doing to him? His softening cock was slowly sliding out of her, yet she was still shuddering.   
“You ok, Riley-girl?”  
She opened her eyes and looked at him, and wiggled her wrists, still held by him. He let go, saying, “Shit baby, I’m sorry.”  
Riley threw her arms around him, burying her face in his neck, shaking and sniffling. Sean was terrified he’d hurt or frightened her. Tears sprang to his eyes as he said, “Riley, baby, I’m so sorry!” He was trying to pull away so he could look at her, but she wouldn’t let go. He held her tightly as she took a deep shuddering breath, and said softly, “You didn’t do anything bad.”  
She finally allowed him to pull away and look at her. “Baby, I made you cry! Why-”  
“Stop,” she said softly. “You didn’t hurt me or anything. That was just...intense.” A few tears of relief escaped from Sean’s eyes and she wiped them away, and he did the same for her. He managed a smile and said, “You scared the crap out of me, lady.”  
“Sorry, it was hard to talk for a minute.”  
“Yeah, I thought I went blind for a sec, there.”

They sat in the waist deep water on the stairs for a few more minutes: Riley with her legs wrapped around Sean, and Sean with his arms around her, rocking her gently. It was dark out, though not very late, but they were exhausted. Sean whispered to her, “Hold on to me, baby.” He stood with her wrapped around him, and headed into the house. He carried her up into the bedroom and placed her gently on the bed, telling her, “I’m just going to go turn out the lights and lock the doors. I’ll be right back, ok?” Riley nodded at him sleepily, and he knew she’d probably be asleep by the time he got back.   
Sean went downstairs and picked up their wet bathing suits from outside and hanging them over the shower rod of the downstairs bath to dry. He turned off the downstairs lights and locked the doors, and headed back to the bedroom. Sure enough, Riley was sound asleep, long hair fanned out on the pillow, under the blankets. For a long moment, Sean just stood and watched her sleep. She just looked so incredibly content and beautiful. Letting her go back to Georgia was not going to be easy.


	23. Chapter 23

Riley woke at 5 a.m. to use the bathroom. Checking her phone, she saw she had a voice mail from Sheriff Grimes, of all people. Taking her phone with her, she put on Sean’s bathrobe and crept out of the room to listen to it.  
“Hey Riley, it’s Sheriff Grimes. Got some news for you, stuff you should know. GIve me a call when you wake up, I should be in the office all day. Thanks, dear.”

The message had been left an hour earlier, so he was already at work. Going downstairs so she wouldn’t wake Sean, she called the Sheriff up.  
It rang once and he answered, “Sheriff Rick Grimes.”  
“Hi Rick, it’s Riley.”  
“Well hi dear! It’s good to hear your voice! How have you been?”  
“I’m good. All healed up, and getting ready to taper off my counseling visits.”  
“Well that’s just great! I’m glad to hear you’re doing so well.”  
“So you said you had some news for me? Is it about what happened? Isn’t that all over?”  
“Yes, it’s over. You don’t have to worry about that. But it does kind of relate to the incident.” He sighed before going on. “Do you remember how I told you he’d killed two other girls, in Kansas and Massachusetts?”  
“Yes…”  
“Well, the first girl was in Kansas. She had a family that looked for her when she turned up missing. They wanted to be kept aware if we ever caught him. So I called them to let them know about it. I didn’t tell them what happened to you, I just told them he had victimized another woman and she had killed him in self defense. They wanted me to pass a message on to you.”  
Riley took a deep breath in the darkness of Sean’s living room and sat down on his couch. “What did they say?”  
“They said thank you. They were sorry for whatever he might have done to you, but they were glad that he couldn’t hurt anybody else.”  
Tears fell from Riley’s eyes. “Wow. What about the other girl? The girl in Massachusetts?”  
She could hear Rick sigh over the phone. “She had no family. The only reason we knew it was him was that she had told some friends at her job about having a date with him. After her date, she didn’t show up for work, which wasn’t like her, and they got concerned. A missing person’s report was filed and her body was found, but by that time, he was long gone. We think that’s why he went after her….and maybe why he went after you. Did he know that you had no family?”  
“Yeah. I mean I had known him practically since I moved here. He was the one that fixed my car that first day. He always worked on it for me, routine maintenance or whatever. We would chat, and he asked about my family. Seemed like a pretty benign question. But he never knew that I lived with and worked for Norman. I doubt he would have done what he did in the first place if he had.”  
“Yeah, he knew if there was no family, that it would take longer for people to miss them. Give him time to take off. I gotta tell ya, I ain’t sad he’s gone. There’s also more news.”  
“Ok, what else?”  
“It concerns the old barn.”  
Rick didn’t have to elaborate. He meant the barn that Kevin had taken her to that she almost died in. It belonged to an old man by the name of Paul Phillips who had been waiting for nature to take it’s course and for the barn to fall down on it’s own. When he found out what had happened, poor Mr. Phillips had been beside himself with guilt.  
Riley took a breath. “What about it?”  
“In a month, Mr. Phillips is paying to have it knocked down and burned. He still feels responsible.”  
“He’s not. If that place wasn’t there, Kevin would have just found someplace else. He would have tortured me in that van if he had too.”  
“Yeah, that’s what I told him. But he wants to get rid of it. He wanted me to let you know, in case you wanted to witness it.”  
Riley thought it over for a moment. “I don’t know. I may not even be there, I may be here.”  
“Here?” Rick asked. “Are you not in Senoia right now?”  
She chuckled and replied, “No, I’m in L.A. visiting Sean!”  
“Young lady, what time is it there?”  
Riley looked at the clock on the microwave in the kitchen. “About 5:30 a.m.”  
“Oh for heaven’s sake! Go back to bed!”  
She laughed. “I will. Bye Rick.”  
“Goodbye Riley.”

Riley ended the call and just sat on the couch in the living room. Did she want to go back to that barn, even to see it burn down? She decided to lay down on the couch for a few, but ended up falling asleep.  
A few hours later, Sean was starting to wake up and reached for Riley, but she wasn’t there, and her side of the bed was cold. He sat up and looked around. Had she left? Did she leave him the way he left her? Her suitcase was still by the closet, but her phone was gone. Throwing on some pajama pants, Sean practically flew down the stairs in a panic, and stopped short when he saw her sound asleep on the couch. The relief he felt was unbelievable. She was curled up in his bathrobe with her phone next to her. Had he been snoring that loud? He went back upstairs for a blanket and covered her gently, moving her phone over to the coffee table. Grabbing his own phone, he took a quick photo of her, then headed into the kitchen to make some coffee.  
About 45 minutes later, Riley started to stir. Sean got a cup and fixed her coffee for her just the way she liked, and brought it over to her as she sat up. She smiled at him, saying, “How did you know how I like my coffee?”  
“Because I watched you make it every day for a few months. I paid attention. Now I have a question for you: why are you sleeping on my couch?”  
Looking at Sean, Riley could see the worry on his face. “Because Sheriff Grimes left me a voicemail to call him. I came down here so I didn’t wake you, and I guess I fell asleep afterward.”  
“Sheriff Grimes called you? Why?”

Riley told him everything she and Rick had talked about. Sean listened quietly to everything then asked, “Are you going to go see the barn fall?”  
“I’m not sure. I kind of feel like I need to. Would you be able to come to Georgia that weekend? I wouldn’t want to do it alone.”  
Sean picked up his phone and started fussing with it. Riley was confused. “Sean, what are you doing?”  
“Booking my flight to Georgia in a month…..and booking your flight back here in two weeks.” Riley opened her mouth to protest, but he held up a hand to stop her. “Babygirl, I’ve got frequent flier miles out the wazoo. I’ve been hoarding them for years, waiting for something to use them on. Waiting for you. And you are flying first class again.”  
“Sean, I don’t need to fly first class.”  
“I think you do. You said it yourself that they gave you a meal and champagne and you were able to sleep. Those are little things that I can do for you, so please let me. I know you are independent, and I know you want to pay your own way. But let me treat you a little bit. Let me make sure that when you come here, you are comfortable and taken care of.”  
Riley was touched. “You don’t have to take care of me.”  
He smiled at her. “Look at it this way: when I’ve stayed with Norm, who always made sure I was fed?”  
“Me.”  
“And who always did my laundry?”  
“Me.”  
“And who always made sure the bed was ready and made when I showed up, so I could go right to sleep when I was tired? Who got on my case about wearing sunscreen? And made sure I remembered to charge my phone?”  
“Well, me…”  
“Right. You’ve always taken care of me. Now I get to take care of you.”  
“But you already did so much when….when I was….when I was hurt.”  
“I like taking care of you. Ri, you are fiercely independent. I know that, and I like it. You have NEVER asked me for help, and probably never will. But I am going to take care of you and treat you a little bit. Deal with it.” And he went right back to making flight arrangements on his phone.

She went to take a shower, and Sean insisted on “helping” her. He had a glorious shower, with two shower heads on opposite sides of the stall so no one had to stand in the cold. He got it all set up and opened the glass door for her. She asked him, “You shower with others often?”  
“No. I can set it to only one showerhead. You have to remember I was married once.”  
Riley felt a twinge of jealousy, and didn’t say anything. Sean smiled at her and said, “And even though I did this for…’her’, she would never shower with me. I rarely even saw her without a face full of makeup. She had this thing about never looking ‘undone’ around me.”  
Riley turned her back to him and said softly, “Must have been nice.” He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her.  
“No, it wasn’t. I like girls who can be real. She wouldn’t let me see her without full hair and makeup. She used to come to bed after I fell asleep, and wake up before me. I once woke up in the middle of the night and got a good look at her. She wasn’t bad looking at all without make up. When I told her the next day, she kind of lost her shit. She didn’t care that I liked and wanted her natural once in awhile, she just cared that I ‘betrayed her trust’. I think that was when I knew it wouldn’t last.”  
“Wow. You’ve seen me more times without makeup than with. And I just usually have my hair in a ponytail.”  
“Yep. A ponytail on top of your head like ‘I Dream of Jeannie’.” He started to shampoo her hair. “And I like you that way, too. You’re real. You know there are times to dress up and times to relax.”  
Unable to help herself, Riley thought back to the horrible things he had said to her. Taking a breath as he rinsed the soap from her hair, she said, “Can I ask you something?”  
He didn’t like the sound of that, he had a feeling he knew what was coming, but he said, “Of course.”  
She turned and looked at him. “If you always cared about me for such a long time, then why? Why did you say those things? You say you didn’t mean them, and I believe you, but why say them in the first place?”  
“Ok. We still need to talk about this. Let’s finish showering and get dressed, then we can talk, ok?”  
He put conditioner in her hair and rinsed it out carefully, then helped her wash her back. She washed his while he washed his own hair. They got out and got dressed, and went outside to sit in the lounge chairs by the pool, with Sean bringing them out a few beers.  
“Isn’t it early for this?” Riley asked, taking a swig anyway.  
“I figured you’re still on Georgia time.”  
He didn’t say anything for a while, and neither did she. Finally he just said, “Fear.”  
“Care to elaborate?”  
“I’ve liked you for a long time. Hell, you’re the only girl I’ve been with for something like the last 2 years. Nobody measured up to you. You were kind of my ideal. I would flirt with you and you would shoot me down, and I never was sure if you were kidding or really hated me. Staying with you and Norm for as long as I did was a game changer, that was for sure. I finally got a chance to get close to you. And the closer I got, the closer I wanted to be. When you went out on that date, I was jealous. And then it turned out so badly, and I was angry at myself for letting you go.”  
“You couldn’t have stopped me.”  
“No, but I felt like if I had asked you out, you wouldn’t have been out with him. And yes, I know that’s stupid. I just wanted to wrap you up and keep you safe. And we got closer every day. And I knew that I really liked you. A LOT. And then, seeing you all prettied up for Lauren’s wedding...damn girl. I had always thought you were pretty, but that night I knew I was a goner. I was absolutely crazy about you. I couldn’t take my eyes off of you all night. I was glad we didn’t go the same time as Norman, and I was glad he wasn’t coming home with us. When you had me unzip your dress...it was like a dream come true. Especially when it turned out that you wanted me as much as I wanted you.”  
“But I still don’t understand.”  
“Riley, I run from commitment. I’ve screwed up the few serious relationships I’ve had. But with you, it was different. All I wanted was to be with you, but all I could think about was how I always screwed everything up. I felt you deserved someone better than me. Someone who wasn’t afraid, who wasn’t a screw up like me. I thought I needed to be away from you. You needed someone else. And I thought the easiest thing, would be if I was such an asshole that you hated me. Then you could put everything on me, and that’s where the blame belonged anyway, and you wouldn’t still want me. You could move on. When I left, I assumed you would. Norman wouldn’t tell me much about you, he wanted me to call you. But I knew if I even heard your voice, I would want you back. And I finally couldn’t stand it anymore. I had to see you. I had to tell you to your face, in person, how sorry I was. When you answered the door, when I saw you in person for the first time in a year...I knew I had to be with you. I knew how badly I screwed up. I was ready to get on my knees and beg forgiveness if I had to...and I did.” Sean had tears in his eyes as he continued, “And I am so so sorry I hurt you. I wasted so much time.” He hung his head.  
Riley was floored. She had never seen him like this. Head down, he sniffled and wiped at his eyes, then quietly said, “And I’m so afraid that you’ll walk away from me right now.” He was sitting on the edge of the chaise lounge next to hers, elbows on his knees, face hidden. She got up, sat next to him, took his face in her hands and made him look at her. Smiling gently, she said, “I’m not going anywhere. We BOTH made mistakes. We should have been talking. I was afraid, too. But I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere. I’m not walking away, Sean Patrick. It’s not going to be easy, we have a lot of distance. And I know there will be times when I can’t visit because you’ll be working. But for now, I want this. I want YOU. I want to try. I am NOT walking away from you.”  
All Sean could think was how amazing she was, trusting him after all he had done to her. “Damn, Riley. You’re just...amazing.”  
“There’s something else I’ve been wondering about. Something Kevin said about a tracker on my cell phone?”

Sean spent the next hour telling her about not only the tracker on her phone, but how he’d had her checked out by a P.I. when Norman had her move in. Surprisingly, she understood why he did both things. Saying, “Next time you want to track me or know about my past, you could just ask me, you know.”  
“Duly noted.”


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just an FYI, we have suffered a death in the family. I will try to continue posting a chapter every day, but I will have to go out of state to deal with things, and don't want to take my laptop. So please bear with me while we take care of this. Thanks.

Saturday and Sunday found Sean and Riley fucking on every horizontal surface in his house...and a few outside. They fucked on the diving board of the pool. They fucked with Riley bent over the back of the couch. Riley fucked Sean on the stairs. Sean ate her out on the kitchen counter. He fucked her over the rail of the balcony outside of his bedroom in the dead of night. She fucked him on the chaise lounge in the sunset. On one of their breaks in between, they cuddled up on the couch to watch TV. Sean was stroking Riley’s hair, and she fell asleep when he felt it. One of the scars, now hidden by her hair, when Kevin had fractured her skull. ‘Never again,’ he vowed silently to himself. ‘Not even if I have to quit acting, and kidnap her to a desert island to keep her safe. Should have done that in the beginning.’ He still felt responsible. Riley had long since forgiven him, she never blamed him to begin with. But he didn’t know if he would ever forgive himself.

Riley’s plane was due to leave LAX at 6, so she had to be there at 4:30 at the latest, and she would arrive in Atlanta just after midnight. She and Sean had fucked so much that they were both walking a little slower than usual, and Riley had discovered she was much more flexible than she gave herself credit for. At about 3 p.m., Riley limped her way upstairs and started to pack her suitcase. Sean found her sitting on the bed, eyes closed, holding his pillow close. “Riley, you ok?”  
She opened her eyes. “You’re going to think I’m weird, but I was just smelling your pillow. It smells like you. And I won’t be able to smell you for 12 days. And yes, I realize I sound like a psycho.”  
“Nope.” He walked toward her while taking off his shirt.  
“Babe, I don’t think my pussy can handle another invasion of your Jimmy Johnson.”  
Sean laughed, telling her, “That’s not what I was doing. You can take my t-shirt home with you.” He handed it to her, and she raised it to her face, breathing in his scent.   
“This will work,” she said smiling. “But I’ll probably wear it to bed and then it won’t smell like you anymore.”  
“Hopefully by that time, you’ll be on your way home. I mean...back here. To my home. I mean-”  
“I know what you mean, Sean. It’s ok.”  
Riley carefully folded his shirt and packed it in her suitcase. She looked up at him. “What time do we need to leave?”  
“By 3:30, just to be on the safe side.”  
“So,” she looked at the digital clock on the bedside table, “15 minutes?”  
Sean sat down next to her on the bed and took her hand. “Yeah.”  
“I feel like I just got here.”  
“I know, baby, I do too.”  
They sat silently, with Sean holding her hand, for the 15 minutes they had. Then they walked out to the car, with him carrying her suitcase. He held her hand all the way to the airport. Instead of dropping her off, he parked the car, and walked with her. She did curbside check in again, it was so much easier. He walked her to the security line, and kissed her goodbye. “Ok, pretty girl. When you get to the gate, text Norman and remind him to come pick you up. And when you get in his car, you text me so I know he got you. Ok?” Riley wouldn’t meet his eyes. “Come on, baby girl. Be brave. You aren’t even gone yet,” he chuckled, the laughter dying on his lips when she looked up at him, tears running down her face. “Ri...Ri...Riley-girl...come on now. None of that,” he said pulling her into his arms. He couldn’t stand to see her cry. It was hard enough holding in his own tears. Sean pulled away and used his mock-angry voice. “That’s quite enough of that young lady,” he said as he wiped away her tears. “I want you to turn around and march your cute little ass right into that security line.”  
“But-”  
“No buts. Babygirl, I will stand right here until you are so far down the hallway I can’t see you anymore. I promise.”

Riley nodded at him and got into the security line, turning around several times to check that he was still there. She was cleared, and started walking down the hall. Looking at the signs, her gate was off to the right. She turned and looked. Sean was still there, hands in his pockets, watching her. He looked so far away. She pointed to the hallway, and then gave a little wave. He waved right back. She turned and headed down the hallway.  
Riley was gone.  
‘12 days,’ he reminded himself silently, as he turned and walked out of the airport. ‘Just 12 days until I can see my Riley again.’  
Sean sat in his car with tears running down his face. He was glad he held it together for her. But he was only human. Starting the car, he drove home, and let himself into his house. It seemed so much emptier without her in it. He sat on the bed, picked up her pillow, and held it to him, smelling her sweet smell. His phone went off. A text from Riley saying, “Texted Norman to remind him, he said, ‘Duh.’ LOL I miss you already. :’( “  
He texted back, “Miss you, too. Will be sleeping on your pillow until you get back.”  
“Skype tomorrow, 6 o'clock your time?”  
“It’s a date, gorgeous girl.”  
“Thought I was your pretty girl? ;) “  
“You’ve been upgraded.”  
“Speaking of, boarding now, ttyl.”  
“ *smooch* “  
Sean snuggled up to her pillow. 12 days never seemed so far away.

Riley had a nice dinner on the plane, and took a bit of a cat nap and watched a bad movie. She already missed Sean terribly. The plane finally landed and she made her way to the luggage carousel. As soon as she got her bag, she headed out the doors, and texted Norman and told him where to pick her up. She saw his telltale Jeep pull up and she jumped in and they took off before anyone could notice. The first stoplight they came to, Norman undid his seatbelt and leaned over to hug her. “So how was your trip?” He asked as he redid the belt.  
“It was good. You saw the pictures.”  
“I saw a pic of your leg on Betty Grable’s leg print and hugging the H in the Hollywood sign, and then you were both suspiciously silent until you got back to LAX….”  
Riley couldn’t hide her smile, and Norman told her, “And don’t think I didn’t notice you walking funny out to the car.”  
“You did not.”  
“Yes I did! Girl, you always walk like the devil is hot on your heels, but tonight you were just strolling with a bit of a limp.”  
Riley quickly texted Sean. “Heading home now, Norm said I’m walking with a limp.”  
A few seconds later her phone pinged with a reply. “He’s just jealous he can’t do that to a woman. Also, check my Instagram…”  
Oh great, now what did he post? Fans had gone apeshit over his Georgia peach remark. It was the pic with her leg on Betty Grable’s leg print. He had cropped out her face, thankfully. He captioned it, “Better legs than the most beautiful legs in the world. My Georgia peach.” She looked at a few of the comments. Some were nice. “Better legs than Betty Grable - damn!”, and “What great legs this girl has!” But there were some hateful ones. “Georgia peach my ass. If she’s so gorgeous why crop out her face?”, and “That bitch is fat.” She sighed. She pinged back, “I appreciate you hiding my face, especially since some people already hate me.”  
Within seconds she got a reply. “FUCK THEM. They are jealous that I’m with a gorgeous girl. Most of them aren’t exactly hot. Haters gonna hate. Lovers gonna love.” Then he pinged her again. “You are my Georgia peach, my California cutie, my pretty, gorgeous girl. My Riley. Mine, all mine! :D”  
She laughed. They were nearing the house and she was suddenly tired. “Yep, all yours! Almost home and exhausted. Gonna fall right into bed. Skype tomorrow. Night, lover boy.”  
“Night, beautiful. Xoxo”  
Sean didn’t think he was that tired, but he snuggled into her pillow and fell asleep breathing her in.  
Riley went straight to her room, took out Sean’s shirt and put it on, and fell into bed. Sleeping soundly surrounded by his scent.

The next morning, Riley told Norman about the barn coming down. About how she had been invited to witness it, and how Sean was going to come to Georgia that weekend. “I’m sorry, I should have cleared it with you first.”  
“Ri, it’s fine. He can come here to see you anytime he wants, ok? As for the barn...do you want to go?”  
“At first I thought no way. But the more I think about it, the more I want to go. I want to see it razed and burned. I just….I think I need to see it happen. Does that make sense?”  
“It makes perfect sense, girl.”  
“But I would really, really like it if you guys could come with me. If you have to work that day, it’s ok, I’ll still have Sean. But if not, would you come, too?”  
“If I have to work, I’m requesting it off. I’m going with you. Period. The zombies will keep for another day.”  
She gave him a big hug. “Thanks, boss man.”  
He kissed the top of her head. “Anytime, Riley-girl.”  
That night on Skype she told Sean about her conversation with Norman, letting him know that if she did go, she wanted them both to be there.  
“You sure you want to go, Ri? You don’t have anything to prove. You’re here, he’s gone forever. That’s all that matters.”  
“I know. And no, I’m not 100% sure. I’m not going to know until that day, I think. But I am leaning heavily toward it. Kevin is gone, the minivan he stole is gone, his Chevy truck is long gone. This is the last thing left to remind me. I sometimes still have nightmares of being in there. Maybe if I see it burn down, it’ll get into my subconscious that it really is over.”  
“I’ll be there with you, whether you go or not.”

They Skyped every night. A few days before her next visit, he told her, “Your pillow doesn’t smell like you anymore.”  
“Your t-shirt doesn’t smell like you anymore, either.”  
They sat looking at each other. She was wearing his white t shirt anyway. Since it was just before bedtime for her, she had nothing underneath, and her hard nipples pressed against the fabric.  
“Man, have I loved seeing you every night in my shirt. I know you don’t wear anything underneath. Every night, I can see those hard nipples teasing me.”  
Riley just giggled, and Sean realized, “You’ve been doing that on purpose this whole time haven’t you?”  
“I wanted you to remember how much you missed me.”  
“You are lucky that you aren’t here right now, little lady!”  
“Why is that?”  
“I would probably put you over my knee and give you a spanking for teasing me like that, you naughty, naughty girl!”

Sean watched her cheeks turn pink, and he also caught the hitch in her breath. He leaned closer to the computer, closer to her. Saying softly, “What’s going on, Riley-girl? Does that excite you?”  
Riley looked away and he barked, “Eyes on me, missy, right now!” She snapped her eyes back to him, and his voice lowered. “Much better. I asked you a question, I expect an answer.” He pulled off his shirt before continuing. “Does the idea of me spanking you excite you?”  
Riley was quiet for a moment, finally saying, “Yes….”  
“Yes what, little girl?” He whispered.  
Riley looked confused and said, “Yes...sir?”  
“Good girl.” She watched as his hand dropped out of sight. “Lift up the shirt, Riley.”  
“What if someone sees?”  
“Like who?”  
“Homeland Security. You know they watch some of these.”  
“Let’s give them something worth looking at. Lift it up, little girl.”  
Riley did as she was told, lifting the shirt up over her naked breasts. Sean looked at them and sighed. “Damn girl, I wish you were here.”  
“So do I.”  
Riley could see his arm moving slowly. “Sean, where is your hand?”  
He gave her a lazy smile and asked, “Where do you think it is? Rubbing my damn cock. You drive me crazy, baby.”  
“Show me.”  
He raised an eyebrow. “Really?”  
“Yeah.”  
Sean stood up, and she could see his lounge pants were pushed down just enough to have his dick out, and he was slowly running his hand up and down the shaft. A bit of pre-cum appeared on the tip, and he swiped his finger over it and used it as lube, groaning as he did so. He started rubbing a bit faster, then suddenly flopped back down in the chair. “Sorry baby, I gotta sit down or I’ll pass out when I cum.” He looked at her. “Play with your nipples, help me get off.” Riley pulled the shirt all the way off, then reached up and tweaked her already hard nipples, gasping. Sean loved that. “Do it again, babygirl,” he said, eyes concentrated on the screen. She did it several more times, finally slouching back in her chair, one hand still playing with her nipples, the other slipping down, out of sight, into her panties.  
It didn’t escape Sean’s notice. “That’s right babygirl,” he told her. “Touch yourself. Imagine it’s me, it will be soon.”  
Riley rubbed circles around her clit, not yet touching it, and Sean said, “Show me.”  
Standing on shaky legs, Riley stood, hand still in her panties. Sean gave her a smile and then softly said, “Take off your panties, baby.”  
Riley pushed them down her legs and stood there naked and obviously unsure. Sean said reassuringly, “You look amazing. Can’t wait for you to be here with me. Touch yourself, angel. Let me see how you do it.”  
Riley again started circling her clit, again not really touching it. Her circles got smaller and smaller until she was finally rubbing her swollen bud. Her legs got a little shaky, and Sean said, “Go ahead and sit down before you fall down, darlin’.” Mmm, that southern drawl of his would come and go from time to time, and she loved it.  
Sitting back down, their eyes locked over the miles, their breaths got heavier and faster. “Fuck, babydoll,” Sean panted, “you’re on the other side of the country, and you still got me hard as a fuckin’ rock.”  
“Sean…” she panted, “I’m close.”  
“Don’t you dare. Not without permission. You ask first, you understand?”  
“Yes, sir.”  
“Good girl,” he huffed, his eyes closing in ecstasy. “Such a good little girl for me….”  
After a few more minutes, she asked, “Can I cum, sir?”  
She could see the evil glint in his eyes as he set his jaw and told her, “No.”  
Riley wasn’t prepared for that. “B-but sir….”  
Sean was gritting his teeth, holding back, he squeezed the base of his cock. “You didn’t say the magic word. Bad Riley.”  
Riley was teetering on the edge of her orgasm, afraid she’d cum even if he told her not to. “Can I cum, sir, PLEASE?”  
He could hear the desperation in her voice and see it on her face. “Yes, princess, cum for me.”  
He watched the computer as she came apart for him on the other side of the country, hand over her mouth to stifle her screams and moans from Norman, who was in the living room watching a movie. She took a minute to come down, opened her eyes, and smiled, “Thank you, sir.”

Sean reached over and ran his hand along her face on the screen. Three more days.   
“Are you going to cum for me, too, sir?”  
“Anything for you, Riley. You want me to cum on my stomach, so you can see it?”  
“Yeah…”

He started to stroke himself faster and harder, watching her face, which was in rapt attention. “Here it comes, Riley-girl, all for you, baby!” He spurted not on his stomach, but his chest, and with his head thrown back, a few streams reached the bottom of his neck. He just kept crying out, “Oh Riley! RILEY!” Sean collapsed back on his chair, streams of cum running down his chest. He opened his eyes, and saw Riley still watching him. She asked softly, “You ok?”  
He reached for his shirt on the floor to clean himself off. “Yes and no. Yes, I’m alive, but no because I wish you were here.” Riley’s heart broke. He sounded so sad. He continued on, “You know, every once in awhile, I’d get lonely in this house by myself. But I was never lonelier than when you went back to Georgia.” He lowered his eyes and picked at an imaginary spot on his desk.  
Riley’s heart broke. He sounded completely miserable. “Oh, Sean. It’s only-”  
“Three more days,” he interjected. “Believe me, I know. I count them down every damn day. And every day seems longer than the last one. Then you get here, and it feels like you turn right around and leave.” He sighed and scrubbed a hand over his face and looked up at her. “I’m sorry, baby. I don’t mean to unload on you like that.”  
“It’s ok. I mean, it’s not easier for me, but I have Norman to keep me company. And I work a 9 - 5 for him, more or less, so I’m kept busy all day. And you can unload on me anytime you want. That’s what friends are for.”  
“You’re more than a friend, Riley. I hope you know that.”  
“I do. It’s getting late. I should hit the sack. Night, Seanie.”  
“Night, Riley.” He blew her a kiss, she smiled and blew him one back, and she was gone.

Sean went through his nightly ritual of loading the dishwasher, and making sure all the doors and windows were locked. They had been on Skype for 2 hours. It was 11 p.m. for Riley, but only 8 p.m. for Sean. He opened a beer and settled on the couch to watch some mindless television.  
His mind kept wandering. She was way more than a friend. She was pretty much a girlfriend, right? But at their age, did that really mean anything? Was he supposed to ask her to go to the school dance or something? Riley was his, as far as he was concerned. But did she think and feel the same? He sat there pondering that until he was finally tired enough to sleep. He’d figure it out in the morning.


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting this from Texas, hope you enjoy it. As I said, I will TRY to post every day, but no promises. Thank you for the messages of sympathy, they have been appreciated. <3

The next morning, Sean called Norman while he was in the makeup trailer.     
“Reedenstein!”   
“Hey!  What’s up?  Riley says you’re coming down at the end of the month to watch the barn of nightmares go up.”   
“Yeah, hope that’s ok.”   
“You are always welcome at my place, you know that.”

“I got a question, but you can’t tell Riley I asked.”   
“Dude, you’d better not be fucking around.”   
“No!   Jesus, have a little faith in me!”   
“Alright, what’s the question.”   
“Does she like jewelry?”   
Norman was quiet.  What kind of a question was that?     
“You still there, Norm?”   
“Yeah, why?”  Suddenly Norman thought he knew what was going on.  “Are you going to ask her to marry you?”   
If Norman could have seen Sean’s eyes pop out of his head, it would have been hilarious.  “What?  NO!  Damn, Reedus!  We just started our...relationship.  I wanted to get her a necklace.  I just don’t know if she’s into jewelry.”   
Norman got a huge smile on his face.  “I’m sure she’d love it.  Make it something small and simple, she’s not a flashy jewelry kind of girl.  And she doesn’t have or wear much, but most of what she has is silver tone, she once told me she didn’t like yellow gold.”   
“Do...do you think maybe she’d like a little heart shaped necklace?  I...I want to ask her to be my girl.  I mean, I know she kind of IS, but I want it official.”   
“Awwww!”   
“Shut up.”   
“I think she’d love it.”   
“Ok, cool.  Don’t tell her.”   
“I won’t.  Take care, and I’ll see you soon.”   
  
Sean drove downtown to the little jewelry store.  He had walked by a few days ago and saw the little heart shaped necklace in the window, and immediately thought of Riley, and couldn't get it out of his head.  He walked in, and the lady behind the counter said, “Hello, can I help you find anything today?”   
“Um, yes ma’am,” Sean said, always the polite gentleman.  “I saw a silver heart shaped necklace in the window the other day.  Do you still have it?”

The woman smiled at him, charmed by his nervous demeanor.  “Yes of course,” she told him, pulling it out of the window display and bringing it over to him.  He held it up and smiled.  It was perfect, small but not too tiny.  He could 100% picture it on Riley.   
The woman went into her sales pitch.  “It’s white gold, simple yet elegant, perfect for that special person in your life.  It’s $175.”   
“It’s perfect for her.  I don’t suppose you do engraving?”   
“Yes, but it takes a day.”   
“Oh, that’s fine.”

She gave him the form to write down exactly what he wanted engraved, and the total came to just over $200.  And she was worth every penny.   
One of the things Sean knew was that Riley didn’t care about his money.  She worked hard and had her own.  She never asked him to pay for anything, and would sometimes argue when he did.  But that was just Sean’s way.  A southern gentleman through and through, opening doors, pulling out chairs, and paying for his lady.  And she was definitely his lady.   
On the way back home, he got nervous.  What if she didn’t like the necklace?  What if she didn’t want to be his lady?  Had he made a $200 mistake?  He refused to think about it.  They’d been through so much.  They were together now.  That was all that mattered.

 

That night on Skype, Riley told Sean, “You sure look happy tonight.”   
“I do?”   
“Yes.  Last night you seemed so sad….”   
“Well, I’m one day closer to seeing my Riley.  That makes me happy.”   
Riley gave him a huge smile and said, “It makes me happy, too.”

 

Again Riley left early Friday morning with Norman taking her.  This time she just packed a carry-on with everything she needed, so they wouldn’t have to wait at the luggage carousel.  She napped on the plane after having something to eat, and again was woken by the flight attendant as they got ready to land.  She shot Sean a quick text, asking, “Should we meet at the luggage carousel?  I have a carry on only.”   
“Yeah, it will be easier than trying to track each other down outside.”

 

When they landed, she made the familiar trek to the luggage carousels.  Riding down the escalators again, she saw Sean waiting for her.  Unable to help herself, Riley ran and jumped into his arms again, dropping her carry on bag unceremoniously on the ground.  He held her in his arms, and whispered in her ear, “I love the way you say hello.  I’m so happy you’re back.  I’ve missed you so much, baby.”  She pulled back and laid an amazing kiss on him, then smiled.  “Let’s get out of here.”  He reluctantly put her down, and picked up her carry on, using his other hand to grab hers.  Immediately he started in again.  “Did you eat?  Are you hungry?  Did you get any sleep?  Do you need anything?”  Riley laughed.  “Sean, I’m good.  All I need is to get out of here and be alone with you.”     
When they got to the house, he ushered her straight upstairs, and sat her on the bed.  Riley looked at him and asked, “Is everything ok?  You didn’t say much on the ride home.”     
“Yeah, everything is fine, baby.”  Sean had her necklace in it’s little velvet box in his pocket, he had picked it up on his way to the airport.  Riley didn’t look convinced.  As she sat on the edge of the bed, Sean started to pace.  “Actually,” he began, “I wanted to talk to you.”   
She eyed him suspiciously.  “We talk every night.”   
“”Yeah, but I wanted to talk in person.”

“O….kay…”

“We’ve known each other for a while now.  But our relationship is still really new.  And we haven’t really established what kind of relationship this is….” He looked over at Riley.  He eyes had gotten big, and her lips were quivering.  “Sean,” she said softly, “is this like a break up speech?  Did you make me fly out here just so you could dump me?”   
“What?  NO!  No no no, sweetie!”   
Riley heaved a huge sigh of relief, and he wrapped his arms around her, saying.  “Oh god, I’m so sorry!  I didn’t realize how that all sounded!”   
“Sean, what are you trying to say?”

He took a deep breath.  “It’s kind of stupid, I know.  But I never asked if you would be my girl.  Exclusive to each other.  I mean I haven’t been with anyone else, even on just a date, since way before I came to stay with you guys.  I just kept comparing everyone to you, and no one measured up…”   
Riley had a smile on her face.  “Are you actually asking me to be your girlfriend?”   
“Yeah, I am.”   
“That is the cutest thing ever.  You know what?”   
“What?”   
“I kind of considered myself as your girlfriend anyway.  I never really said it out loud, but I used to think about it in my head.”   
“Is...is that a yes?”   
“Yes, I’ll be your girlfriend.  On one condition.”   
“What’s that?”   
Riley tried  to hide her smile as she asked, “We’re going to prom together, right?”   
He smiled at her, “Smart ass!”  Reaching into his pocket, he told her, “Um, I got you a present.”   
“You don’t have to get me anything, you know that!”   
“Yeah, but I saw this and thought of you,” he told her, handing over the little velvet jewelry box.  “I, uh...well I just hope you don’t hate it.”   
Riley opened the box, and there was the silver heart shaped necklace, with the words “Sean + Riley” engraved on it.  She ran a fingertip over the words, and tears started to spill out of her eyes.  Immediately, Sean was kneeling in front of her.  “Oh, babygirl, I’m sorry!  I thought you’d like it!  I can get you something better!  I can get you a….a diamond pendant!  Is that better?” He asked as he tried to take the necklace away.   
She refused to let go of the little box, though, and told him, “Don’t you dare!  You can’t have this back!”   
Poor Sean was confused.  “You mean you like it?”   
“No! I love it.”   
“But you’re crying.”   
“Yes, I’m allowed!  I’ve never had a guy give me much of anything, let alone something like this!  I love it!  You even had our names put on it!  What if I’d said no?”   
Sean thought for a moment then told her, “Maybe you could find another Sean.  But I could never find another Riley.  You’re irreplaceable.” 

He struck her speechless with that one.  He pulled the necklace out of the little box, and she lifted up her hair so he could fasten it behind her neck.  She got up to look in the mirror with a big smile, and he told her, “It’s white gold, so it will never turn your neck green.”

He smile dropped.  “White gold?  Sean, that’s way too expensive.”   
“Riley, it’s not.  I got it from a boutique jewelry store downtown.  Besides, it’s engraved.  Can’t take it back.”

She turned and looked at him.  “Would you really have gotten me a diamond pendant if I didn’t like this?”   
He chuckled.  “With the way you were crying, I thought I’d committed some kind of massive faux pas.  I would pull the stars out of the sky for you.  If you want a diamond pendant, I will get you one of those, too.”   
“No.  I’m not a girl who wears big fancy diamonds or anything.  This is perfect.  Absolutely perfect.”

“Well pretty girl, I have a bottle of wine chilling in the fridge.  What say I bring it upstairs and we celebrate?”

 

He brought the wine and two glasses up, pouring some for them both.  He put some music on his iPod, and they quietly drank their wine.  He pulled off her shoes and started rubbing her feet, it really was adorable.  A certain song came on, and he stood, offering his hand to Riley.  “May I have this dance?”  Smiling, she took his hand, and began to dance slowly with him in the bedroom, while he sang softly in her ear:   
  


_ “Maybe I didn't treat you _

_ Quite as good as I should have _

_ Maybe I didn't love you _

_ Quite as often as I could have _

_ Little things I should have said and done _

_ I just never took the time _

_ You were always on my mind _

_ You were always on my mind…” _

 

The appropriateness of the song and how it perfectly described their relationship was not lost on either of them.   
  
_ “Maybe I didn't hold you _

_ All those lonely, lonely times _

_ And I guess I never told you _

_ I'm so happy that you're mine _

_ If I make you feel second best _

_ Girl, I'm sorry I was blind _ _  
_ _ You were always on my mind _

_ You were always on my mind _ _  
_ _ Little things I should have said and done _

_ I just never took the time _

_ You were always on my mind _

_ You are always on my mind _

_ You are always on my mind…” _

  
  


Sean backed her up against the wall and started kissing her.  He kissed down her neck, pausing at the necklace, then very gently kissed it.  “You make me crazy, lady.”   
“I know the feeling,” she said as she pressed her hand against the bulge in his jeans.  Riley pushed his black shirt up over his head, and pulled his face to hers for a kiss.  Sliding her hands down his chest and over his abs, she undid his pants, and knelt as she pulled them down.  Smiling up at him, she told him, “I’ve missed you,” and wrapped her lips around the head of his cock.    
“Fuck babygirl.  So good to me…”

Riley slowly slid her mouth up and down his shaft as he let out a low moan, then sped up a bit.  He suddenly stepped back, sliding his length out of her mouth and pulled her up, telling her, “Your mouth is amazing, but I’ve waited 12 days to be inside you again.” 

He helped get her clothes off at top speed, then he laid back on the bed, stroking himself and said, “Climb on, beautiful.”   
“I get to do all the work, huh?” She joked.   
He froze and looked at her.  “That’s not why I want you on top.”   
“It isn’t?”   
“No.  I love seeing your body move.  I love seeing how your body reacts when I touch you, and when you cum.  That’s why I like you on top.  But if it bothers you, I can be on top.”

Riley felt like a jerk.  “No, I don’t mind.  I had no idea you….liked the view.  Because it’s why I like YOU on top.  That and I kind of like that you take control,” she said as she crawled over his body and slowly lowered herself onto him, letting out a satisfied sigh.  She started her wonderful rocking back and forth motion as Sean put his hands on her hips.  He really did love the way she moved, the way she let him know what felt good with her little sighs and moans.

 

Riley started riding him a little harder and faster, her little hands on his chest keeping her steady.  “Mmm….Sean…” she whispered, looking down at him.  He long hair fell all around her face like a curtain, and he pulled her down to kiss him.  He held her face close to his, loving the little dark cocoon her tresses made.  They could forever hide from the world in there.  She moved to sit back up, but he held her close to him.  He always enjoyed the view, yes, but he enjoyed having her close even more.

He started to thrust his hips up against her, still holding her tightly.  “Babygirl…..”  He had so much he wanted to say, but he couldn’t.  Not yet.

“Sean, god you feel so good inside me.”   
“You like what I do to you?”   
“Yeah…”   
He gave Riley a devious smile, and said, “No cumming without permission, little girl,” then began swirling his hips.   
“Oh fuck!  That feels so good!  Keep doing that please!”

Sean released her so she could sit up and he could watch her.  He tweaked her nipples gently, and watched as her eyes slid shut and she tightened on him.  “Are you close, Riley?  Gonna cum for me?”   
“Yes!  Can I please, sir?”

“Cum for me babygirl!” he managed to choke out before cumming inside her as she slammed herself down on him.

Riley came screaming his name as he pushed up into her through his own orgasm, practically seeing stars.  

Riley collapsed on top of him into his arms.  Sean rolled her over and started gently kissing her anywhere he could: eyelids, cheeks, neck, lips.  “My perfect little Riley,” he whispered, face buried in her neck.  

Riley was so quiet.  He pulled back and looked at her.  “You ok, beautiful?”   
She gave him a sweet smile.  “I’m absolutely perfect.”

  
Sean reluctantly rolled off of her and set his alarm for two hours, and they snuggled together for a nap.


	26. Chapter 26

Saturday found them lounging by the pool.  Sean mostly swimming and entertaining Riley by doing flips off the diving board, and Riley getting a bit of sun.  Looking at her, Sean said, “If you don’t take off that pendant, it’s going to give you a tan line.”   
“I don’t mind.  I refuse to take it off.  Ever.”

Sean’s ego swelled a bit at that statement.  He grabbed his phone and walked over to her. He turned on the camera and got close to her pendant snapping a pic.  “This is going on Instagram.”   
“But it has my name on it!”

That was true.  Although she didn’t use her real name on Instagram or Twitter, her story had gotten out into the news over the past year.  She laid low and hid, not used to the media attention, while Norman and his handlers deflected any questions having to do with her, referring to her only as a “close friend”, carefully omitting that she lived with him.  Some people had tried to interview Sean about the incident, but out of respect for her, even after he had abandoned her, he’d refused to say anything at all, replying only with “no comment”.  But people knew her name had been Riley.

He quickly blurred her name out beyond recognition, and posted the pic.  He captioned it, “A Georgia peach is my girlfriend.”

Riley said, “I can’t believe people haven’t figured it out already.”   
“The smart ones probably have and don’t care.”

 

Within seconds, the comments started showing up.  Everything from, “Aw, so cute!” to “I bet it’s the fat bitch from the picture at Mann’s.”  Riley just rolled her eyes.  Sean told her, “Haters gonna hate.”   
“And lovers gonna love, right?”   
“You know it.  I wish those people knew what a truly ugly thing jealousy really is.”

 

Sunday he took her to the airport again.  And again, he waited in the hallway until she waved and turned the corner, both of their hearts breaking.  Walking out to his car, Sean decided to talk to Riley about coming down for a whole week.  He owed her a trip to Disneyland, and if they went on a weekend, they’d be lucky if they got to go on three or four rides.  If they went on a Tuesday or Wednesday, the park wouldn’t be empty, but it would be better.  Maybe they could go to California Adventure too, or Universal Studios.  Riley had told him about her family trip to Universal Studios.  They drove by the Psycho house in the little tram, and at the time, Psycho 2 was being filmed.  Anthony Perkins was sitting outside in his director's chair, and turned and waved at everyone.  She hadn’t known who he was at 8 years old, but she had been excited at having seen a “real movie star”, and had waved like crazy.  Sean smiled to himself.  Riley was so damn adorable, even just thinking of the way she’d told that story made him smile.     
When he pulled up to the house, he checked his phone.  Messages from Riley saying she was checking in and called and reminded Norman, “And he said to me that he ‘wouldn’t forget about it, dammit’.  His words, not mine.”  Then another letting him know she was boarding and missed him so much.  He had given her two of his t shirts he’d worn for her to take with him.  He sat down in his kitchen and had dinner.  Riley had insisted on cooking for him Saturday night.  He tried to talk her out of it, arguing that she was a guest.  She just looked at him and said, “Honey, I actually LIKE to cook.”  That had never occurred to him.  They had run to the grocery to pick up a few things, and she cooked dinner.  She made a big pan of chicken and artichoke lasagna with a spinach salad on the side, and it was so delicious, he loved it.  Always a caretaker, she made enough that he could eat it for a few days if he wanted.  She was appalled at his cooking skills, or lack thereof.  Grilling steaks or burgers was one thing, but he could barely make coffee.  Riley had absentmindedly remarked that if they lived closer, she could teach him how to cook.  Sean would love it if she lived closer.  This every two weeks thing was bullshit.

 

Sean had a few beers waiting to hear from Riley.  Finally his phone went off with a text from her saying, “In the car now, boss man says hi.”   
“Miss you, girl.  So much.  House is so empty without you.”   
“Aw, baby.  You’ll be here soon!”

“12 days.”   
“11 days.  It’s after midnight here. :)”

“Smart ass.  Get some sleep.  Skype tomorrow 9 p.m. your time.”   
“You got it.  Xoxo”

 

Sean finally went upstairs to his room late that night and collapsed on the bed, hugging her pillow.

That week, he signed a contract to do a TV movie.  The only stipulation was that he have every other weekend off, including Fridays. Since he had such a good reputation and was known to come in early, leave late, and work his ass off, they agreed.   

 

The days went by much quicker now that Sean was working.  Unfortunately, he wasn’t always available to Skype.  He was working later days to make up for the weekends that they would have their visits, but he always made sure to check in with Riley, even if it was only on Facetime for 5 minutes.  Riley was very proud of him.  He had a strong work ethic, and he still was making time for her.

 

He flew into Atlanta airport on Friday afternoon.  He was still a bit tired, but he would survive.  Getting off the plane, bag in hand, he headed toward the luggage carousel, where they were going to meet.  Riley was picking him up since Norman really couldn’t.  He saw her standing there with her back to him.  She was wearing a pair of denim capri pants and a black tank top.  He was surprised at the shirt, as you could plainly see her scars.  Her hair was in a ponytail on the top of her head, and she was looking left and right for him.  Sneaking up behind her, he said, “Hey pretty girl.”  She turned around and jumped into his arms, kissing him.  “I missed you,” she told him, pressing her forehead against him.  “Missed you too, Georgia peach.”

 

Lowering her gently to the floor, she took his hand and led him out to the parking lot, asking, “So… Did you get anything to eat?  Are you hungry?  Thirsty?  Are you tired?”  Mimicking his questions to her the first time she flew into L.A.  He laughed, slinging his arm around her and kissing her temple.  “I got you, angel.  That’s all I need.”

 

They climbed into Herbie, and before they were out of the lot, Sean was asleep.  He must have not slept on the way over.  Riley stole a quick look at him.  How did she get so lucky?  He really was a beautiful guy.  Norman was good-looking, in a rugged sort of way, and he cleaned up really nice.  But Sean, he was a different animal altogether.  He was simply beautiful.

She pulled up in front of the house, and ran her fingers along the smile lines on his face, god she loved those lines.  They showed that he smiled a lot in his life.  “Wakey wakes, baby.”  Sean grumbled and opened his eyes.  “Oh damn, I’m sorry baby.  I guess I’m more tired than I thought.  I didn’t sleep well last night.”   
“How come?”   
“Nerves.  Excitement.  Your pillow didn’t smell like you anymore.  Who knows.”

“Are you still sleepy?”   
“As much as I hate to admit it, yes.  I’d love to take you in the house and violate you, but I’m exhausted.”   
“How about we take a nap together?”   
“Now that sounds nice.”   
  


Norman was going to be shooting until at least 8:30, so they would have the house to themselves.  They headed into Riley’s room.  Sean stripped down, fell into bed, and was out like a light, before Riley climbed in.  But when she did, in his sleep, Sean scooted over and spooned her.  In minutes, even though she wasn’t tired, she fell asleep.

 

After sleeping for about 90 minutes, Sean woke up, curled around Riley.  He thought,  _  ‘She looks like an angel,’   _ and decided she should sin.  Gently, so as not to wake her right away, he started kissing down her back.  When he got to her little dimples above her ass, her “snake bites”, he licked all the way back up.  She stirred, breathing out, “Sean…”

He pressed up against her, erection right up against her backside.  “I’m here, babygirl.”   
Riley arched her back against him, letting him know what she wanted.  He ran his hand down her leg, reaching behind her thigh and gently pulling it up towards her chest.  Dipping his hand between, he could feel she was already wet, and he slid into her.  He growled in her ear, “Fucking amazing, babygirl,” as he started to rock against her gently.  Soon, Riley was pushing back against him, reaching back to touch him.  After being apart for 12 days, it didn’t take long.  Riley began to moan and quiver around him, and he thrust into her powerfully a few more times before releasing inside her, whispering, “Riley...god damn….sweet Riley…”

He held her tightly in his arms as she turned and smiled saying, “Welcome to Georgia!”   
“Never had a welcome like that!”

 

They got up and Riley started dinner.  Norman actually came home early, so they all sat and ate together.  “So,” Norman looked at Riley, “have you thought about tomorrow?”  The barn razing and burning was the next day at noon.  “Sheriff Grimes said that there might be a crowd, but they aren’t going to let anyone who isn’t necessary down the road.”   
“Who is considered necessary?” she asked

“The Phillips family, of course, it’s their barn.  The volunteer fire department, in case the fire gets out of hand.  And us.”   
Riley took a deep breath.  “I want to go.”   
Sean reached for her hand, “Sweetheart, you don’t have to go.  You have nothing to prove.”   
“Sean, I need to go.  I need to see it turn to nothing.  I need to convince myself that it’s really over.  I HAVE to.  I need to see it happen.”   
Norman took her other hand.  “Ok.  If that’s what you want, we’ll go with you and stay with you.  We’ll go there whatever time you want, and we’ll come home whenever you want.”

She looked at the guys: her best friend, and her boyfriend.

“Thanks for understanding.”


	27. Chapter 27

Morning came too early for Sean, but he was greeted by the sight of Riley naked in the window again. He laid in bed watching her. Suddenly she said, without turning around, “Quit looking at my ass.”  
Sean chuckled. “It’s a nice ass. And how did you know I was looking?”  
“Because I could feel your eyes burning it up.”

Sean got up and walked to where she was, and pressed himself against her. Riley pulled away, but Sean pulled her back, whispering in her ear, “This is not a sex thing right now. I’m just wanting you to know I’m here. I know what today is, I can only imagine what’s going on in that pretty head of yours. I just want you to know I’m being supportive.”  
Riley turned in his arms and laid her head on his chest, listening to his heart beat. “Thank you, baby. Didn’t mean to be little miss crankypants.”  
Dropping a kiss to the top of her head, he told her, “You aren’t. This is a stressful day.”  
Suddenly Sean sniffed and said, “Do you smell pancakes?”  
Riley sniffed the air. “Yeah...oh shit, I hope Norman isn’t attempting to cook!”

They threw on some clothes and ran out to the kitchen. Norman wasn’t cooking. But he was unpacking breakfast. “I ordered breakfast from the diner for us. Hope everybody likes pancakes,” he looked at Riley and winked. He really was the best boss ever. Sean rolled his eyes. “Show off. I could have picked up breakfast for her.”  
“But you didn’t, lazy ass,” Norman teased back.  
“No fighting at the table!” Riley told them. “My god, are you SURE you two aren’t related?”

Riley spent most of the morning puttering around the house, even though Norman kept reminding her it was her day off. She finally said, “I just have to keep busy until we get this over with.”  
“Oh, of course. I didn’t even think of that. What time do you want to leave?”  
“11:30.”  
“But it’s scheduled for noon. It’s less than 10 minutes from here.”  
“I know. If it’s allowed, I want to go inside beforehand.”  
Sean head whipped around at that. “Absolutely not! You don’t need to be in there!”  
“Sean, if it’s still safe to go inside, I’m going in. I HAVE to. I don’t expect you to understand.”  
“I am not letting you go in there, and that’s all there is to it!” He argued back.  
“Fine, then you can just stay here!”  
Norman watched them bicker back and forth. He understood why Riley wanted to go in there. He also understood why Sean didn’t want her too. He knew they could refuse to go, but Riley would just get into Herbie and go alone, and that would NOT be a good idea. Finally he just said, “Sean, this is Riley’s decision.”  
“Who's fucking side are you on?”  
“No one’s. But it’s obvious she made up her mind. Riley,” he said turning to her, “if we don’t go, will you still go alone and go inside?”  
“Yes.”  
Turning back to Sean, Norman told him, “I’d rather be there in case she needs me. She was alone in there once. I won’t let her be alone in there again.”

Well that made Sean feel like an asshole. Riley had dealt with the Devil himself in that barn. His little princess had slayed the dragon and saved his life and her own. She had every right to go there, whatever her reasons were. Walking over to Riley, he put his arms around her. “I get it baby, I really do. I just want so badly to protect you.”  
“You do. But you can’t keep me from this.”  
“Ok, I won’t.”

At 11:30, they piled into Norman’s jeep and in minutes arrived at a nondescript country road, one Riley was not familiar with. There was a small barricade up, being watched by a few highway patrolmen and Sheriff Grimes. There were a few people from town, as well as a few photographers wanting pictures. When she spotted them, Riley covered her face up with her coat, still afraid of the media attention. Sean and Norm got photographed, Sean ignoring them completely, and Norman giving them the finger. Rick waved them through immediately, telling them, “We’ve got more officers patrolling the entire fence line. Hopefully what’s going on will stay as private for the lady as possible.” Riley muffled a response of “Thank you.” and they continued down the road. After a minute, Sean told her, “We’re clear, honey,” and she peeked out from behind the coat.

The rolled up on the barn, and both guys watched as Riley got out and looked at it. Absolutely no reaction.  
“You ok, Ri?” Norman asked.  
She took a breath and said, “Yeah...I’ve never seen the outside before.”

Of course. She had been unconscious when that asshole brought her there, and unconscious again (and nearly dead) when the paramedics took her out and put her in the helicopter. She had even joked to Norm that it was too bad she was out cold, she’d always wanted to ride in a helicopter, and the one time she had, she didn’t get to enjoy it. 

Old Mr. Phillips approached with his cane. “Yer her, ain’t’cha?” he asked Riley.  
“Yes sir.”  
The man took off the hat he was wearing, scratched his balding head, and replaced it. Looking at her through his thick bifocals, he said, “I cain’t apologize enough.”  
“There’s no need to apologize. You did nothing wrong. If it wasn’t your barn, it would have been someone else’s. He was just a sick, evil, person. He is the only one I hold responsible.”  
The old man gave her a small smile. “Well, I’d like ta think I’m doin’ right by ya, gettin’ rid o’ the damn thing anyhow. I thought I’d let nature have it’s way, but it seems it was built pretty sturdy. Just plain laziness on my part. It’s high time it came down, bein’ a fire hazard and all.” He turned to walk back to the lawn chair he was sitting in to watch everything happen.  
“Mr. Phillips?” Riley asked.  
“Yeah?”  
“Can I go inside for a few minutes?”  
The old man looked surprised. “Ya wanna go back in there?”  
“Yes, please. I won’t take long.”  
“Well, I s’pose ya can. Ain’t nothin’ in there no more. Police took most of it fer evidence, and the rains since then washed everythin’ away. But if ya wanna go take a look, go on in. Take as long as ya need.”  
Riley smiled at the man. “Thank you, sir.” She kissed him on his cheek and he turned pink. As he sat down in his lawn chair, she heard him say to a firefighter, “She kissed me!”

Riley turned to Sean, “Are you ok with this?”  
“No, but I’d rather you go in with me than without.”  
She turned to Norman. “How about you?”  
“Not leaving your side for this, lady.”  
She took the guy's hands in her own, and they walked toward the barn.

When they got to the door, she stopped and just looked at it, then looked around. Riley understood why he picked this place. It was secluded. She couldn’t see any homes at all from here, she had no idea how far the Phillips home was, but she’d heard they owned a LOT of land. The main road was far away, as was the dirt road they drove up on. Turning to Sean, she asked, “How did you know to look here?”  
“I didn’t. We felt that he still had to be here, so we were driving down every dirt road we could find, and checking every abandoned barn, grain silo, everything. We’d ask any people we saw if they’d seen you. I pulled up to the end of the road there, and I thought I saw a light inside, so I went to check it out. When I got closer...I saw you. I saw...I saw him hurting you.” He wiped at his eyes angrily. “I heard him say he was going to kill you. That’s why I busted in like I did. I thought I could distract him and get the upper hand. Didn’t expect the fucker to throw that hammer at me,” he rubbed his chest, even though the bruise from it had long since faded. Riley went to take a step forward, but Sean pulled her back, simply saying, “You don’t have to go in there.”  
“Yes I do. You can come with or stay out here. Either way is fine.”  
Sean wasn’t letting her go in there without him.

Riley slowly pushed open the door and the three of them walked in. The door slammed shut behind them, making Riley jump and turn around. Mr. Phillips had been right: the table he had tied her to, the smaller table he’d had his knives laid out on, even the old random chair off to the side and the lantern he’d had on a hook were gone. Both of them had bled all over the floor, and the rains had washed away every trace of it.   
The inside of the barn looked different in the light of day. Innocent. Harmless. Just an old barn, nothing more, nothing less, with motes of dust floating in the sunbeams that filtered through the broken slats. But Riley knew. She remembered.   
Walking over to a spot and looking up at the rotting roof, she said softly, “This is where the table was. I was tied down and woke up looking at the stars through the holes up there.”  
Sean said gently, “Riley, we should go.”  
She walked over a few paces. “This is where he had the table that he had all his knives laid out on. Right where I could see it. So I would be scared.”  
This time, Norman tried to encourage her to go. “Riley, sweetie, let’s get out of here. You’ve seen it. Now let’s go out and watch them get rid of it, ok?”  
But Riley wasn’t listening. She pointed to a spot saying, “This where I fell off the table when Sean came in,” then another spot, “and this is where I picked up the knife,” and another spot, “and this is where I killed THAT GODDAMN BASTARD!” She was shaking and crying. Norman tried to reach for her, but she stepped away. “No! Don’t touch me! Why? Just why? I’ve just never understood!”  
Sean grabbed her and put his arms around her, holding her tightly. She fought against him trying to push him away at first, then the fight just went out of her. Her legs gave out and she and Sean both fell to the ground. Sean held her in his arms and rocked her, much like the last time they had been in there, but this time, she would be ok. She wouldn’t go to a hospital and flatline twice. She wouldn’t have to endure multiple surgeries all over her battered little body. She wouldn’t fall into a coma.  
And he WOULD NOT leave her.  
He held her and let her cry, whispering softly in her ear. Telling her that everything was ok, and no one would ever hurt her again, and that it was all over, and that she was amazing and saved both of their lives. Norman stood there and felt helpless.  
Finally her crying died down to a few sniffles. She looked up at both Sean and Norman. “Oh god, I’m so sorry.”  
Sean kissed her forehead and helped her up. “This is what we were afraid of,” he told her. Norman added, “Can we please get out of this creepy ass place?” Riley nodded. Sean pulled a tissue out of his pocket, and she dried her tears and blew her nose and just dropped it on the barn floor. The last of her tears could go up with the rest of this place.

They walked back out and joined the small crowd that was allowed to be there. Mr, Phillips peered at her, “You alright young lady?”  
“I’ll feel better when this is over.”  
Mr. Phillips nodded. “Me too.” He turned to an overweight guy in a white t shirt and pair of overalls with a John Deere cap on his head. “Mikey, go knock that eyesore down.” The man turned and climbed into a bulldozer. He started it up and drove it over to the barn. With a loud crack and a splintering of wood, he drove it into one of the barn walls, and the whole thing started to crumble. It didn’t take much after that, just a quick drive over what had collapsed to flatten it, and a few bumps to the beams left standing. He drove the bulldozer away, and some of the firemen grabbed gas cans and poured the gasoline over every scrap of wood. One of them stood back, lit a book of matches on fire, and tossed it. With a big whoosh, it went up. Tara and Rick walked up to watch, the highway patrol was taking care of the crowd.   
Riley had many emotions flooding through her: anger, relief, exhaustion. Tara asked her, “You ok, sweetie?”  
“Yeah. I think I will be.” Turning to Norman she asked, “Can we go home? I don’t want to be here anymore.”  
Before leaving, she thanked Mr. Phillips, and couldn’t resist kissing him on the cheek again, and again he blushed and nudged a firefighter, “Did’ja see that?” He was such a sweet old guy. They climbed into the Jeep, and Riley covered her head with her coat again to avoid the media. It seemed to have gotten worse. As the highway patrol moved people so Norman’s Jeep could get through, Riley could hear reporters asking questions:  
“Is that Riley in the backseat? Why is she hiding?”  
“Riley, don’t you want to make a statement?”  
“How did it feel to kill your assailant?”  
After they got far enough away, Sean said, “It’s ok to come out.”  
Riley muttered, “Fucking vultures.”

They returned to the house. Riley was pretty quiet, which had the guys exchanging concerned looks. She stood at the sliding glass doors, looking out at nothing. Softly, Norman asked, “You ok, Ri?”  
She didn’t answer at first, but then simply asked, “Can I take a soak in your tub?”  
“Sure thing, sweetie.”  
Sean spoke up, “Why don’t you get all settled, and I can bring you a cup of tea? That sound good?”  
Riley gave him a small smile and a nod and disappeared.  
Once they heard the water running in his bathroom, Norman said, “Man, I’m worried. I was supposed to go over Lisa’s tonight, but maybe I should stay here.”  
“Nah. We need to do like when she got hurt: act exactly the same. No special treatment. We start tiptoeing around her, it’ll just piss her off. Riley isn’t a victim, she’s a survivor.”  
“I guess you’re right.”  
Sean got the tea all ready and walked through Norman’s bedroom to the bathroom. Just as he was about to knock, he heard her singing softly to herself.

“This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.  
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.  
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.  
Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine…..”

He smiled to himself. He’d never heard her sing much, but hearing her then was the sweetest sound in the world. Riley was tough. She was going to be fine. He tiptoed back to the bedroom doorway, not wanting to intrude on her moment, then walked to the door with heavier steps. As he suspected, she stopped singing. He knocked on the door. “Riley, it’s me. Got your tea all ready, can I come in?”  
“Yeah.”

Riley had pinned her hair up out of the way, and was soaking in the big tub almost to her neck. Norman had a little bench in there, and Sean scooted it over next to the tub and sat down, handing Riley her tea. She took a few sips and handed it back to him, and he asked her, “You doing ok?”  
“Yeah. It….took more out of me than I thought it would. But I’m glad I saw it happen, and I’m glad I went inside. Maybe now I’ll stop dreaming about it.” She turned and looked at him. “Did you know that I’ve never had nightmares when I sleep with you? Or if I start to, you show up and make them better.”  
“Um, there’s sort of a reason for that….”  
“Oh?”  
“After the first...incident, you fell asleep on the couch that night. We didn’t want to wake you up just to make you go to bed, so I stayed on the other side of the couch, in case you needed anything.”  
“Right, I remember.”  
“Well, during the night, you woke me up whimpering. You were having a nightmare. So I whispered in your ear that everything was ok. That I was there and wouldn’t let anything happen to you and would keep you safe. I know I failed miserably-”  
“Stop. We are not going through that again, Sean Patrick! I knew better than to take off like I did! I don’t blame you, I never did, not for one second. You asked me to forgive you, even though I felt there was nothing to forgive, and I did. Why can’t you afford yourself the same courtesy? What if the roles were reversed?”  
Sean looked at Riley. She had a point. He would have forgiven her long ago, but he was still beating himself up. “I’ll work on it, babygirl. I promise.” He grabbed the bar of soap that was sitting on the edge of the tub, and told her, “Lean forward, I’ll get your back.”  
He soaped up his hands and ran them over her shoulders. She was super tense. “How about before bed tonight I give you a back rub, pretty girl?”  
“That sounds nice.”  
He broached another subject he’d been thinking about. “You should see if maybe you can take a week off instead of just a weekend.”  
“What? Why?”  
“Because I owe you a Disneyland trip. If we want to actually ride the rides instead of waiting in line, we need to go on a weekday. If you come for a week we can even hit California Adventure or maybe Universal Studios.”  
“I can’t do that.”  
“Why not?” He rinsed the soap off of her back and sat back down on the bench.   
She sipped more of her tea and told him, “We never really discussed vacation time or anything, but I think if I had any, I used it all up.”  
“What? How?”  
“Being in the hospital in a coma.”  
“That’s was no vacation. That was...sick time.”  
“I was in there for weeks. I’m lucky I had a job and home to come back to.”  
“He wasn’t going to fire you for that.”  
“I know, but he didn’t have to wait around to see when I’d decide to wake up.”  
“Riley-”  
“Can we not do this right now?” The irritation was evident in her voice. “I just wanted to try and relax in here.”  
“Sure. I’m sorry, baby. Do you want more tea?” Riley didn’t answer, just waved him away, and rubbed her forehead. Great, now she was getting a headache. After Sean left she soaked for a bit longer, then got out, dried off and put on her robe.   
The guys were hanging out on the deck drinking beer as she padded into the kitchen. She needed some aspirin, and a nap, that was all. She took a few aspirins, and poked her head out the door. “Guys, I’m gonna lay down for a bit, I have a headache.”  
Sean was on his feet immediately. “Shit, I’m sorry babe. I’ll come lay down with you.”  
“No, stay here and visit with Norm. I’m just gonna take a nap.” she turned and headed back in the house.  
Sean flopped back down in the chair and looked at Norman. “Actually, I wanted to talk to you about Riley. Has she ever had a vacation?”


	28. Chapter 28

Sean and Norm discussed Riley’s vacation, or lack thereof, for a bit, then Sean went into town to fetch some dinner.  Riley woke up from her nap feeling better, and went out onto the deck.    
“Where’s Sean?”  She still got nervous when he was gone.   
“He went to go grab us some dinner.  I’m gonna have a bite and head over to Lisa’s, but I’ll be back tomorrow before you take him to the airport.”   
“Ok, cool.”   
They sat in silence for a few minutes.  Norman finally said, “So...have you ever thought of taking a vacation?”   
She turned and looked at Norman.  “He talked to you, didn’t he?”   
“Well, yeah.  But we never did discuss vacation time or anything when I hired you.”   
“I’ve taken plenty of vacation days.  You give me every other Friday off to be with him.”   
“That’s only 3 days so far, sweetie.”   
“What about all the time I spent in the hospital?”   
“That was hardly a vacation.”   
“What about the time off I had to take to go to counseling?”

“Riley, why are you making this so hard?  I just want to give you a week to go to Disneyland.  Are you guys having problems?”   
“No!  I’m just grumpy from today.  And I don’t like asking you for stuff.”   
Norman laughed.  “Half the time I try to GIVE you something, you won’t take it!  Remember the grocery thing?”   
Riley started laughing too.  “Yeah, you nearly busted a gut!”

 

Right after she had started working for him, he gave her a credit card.  It was connected to his account, and it was for the household expenses: groceries, cleaning supplies, and the like.  After the first month, he realized the bank statements weren’t adding up to the grocery receipts.  It turned out Riley was paying for the groceries out of her own pocket, using the logic that she ate the food too, so she should pay for it.  Norman had to sit her down and give her a talking to.  She had felt so uncomfortable spending his money, but it‘s not like she was buying fancy dresses at Saks Fifth Avenue, she was buying eggs and cheese and Mr. Clean at the local Piggly Wiggly.

 

“I just feel like I’ve been gone more than I’ve been here.  That I’ve needed YOU to do the things I was hired for,” she told him.   
“Hey, when I hired you I told you I was your friend first and foremost, and your boss second.  If you are gone for a week, it won’t kill me.”   
“Of course not.  Don’t think I don’t know you’ll have Lisa stay here.”   
He smiled and turned pink.  Lisa was something else.  “Riley, I think a week of nothing but relaxing would do you some good.  I know how much it upsets you to leave Sean.  He told me he feels like as soon as you get there you have to leave.  Take a week.  Consider it a gift from me.”   
“Are you absolutely sure about this?  It may not be for another month.”   
“Yes I’m sure.  Consider it a condition of your employment.”

 

Sean arrived with dinner not long after, and sunflowers for Riley.  The smile on her face made it all worth it.  She asked, “Are those for me?”  Sean laughed and said, “They ain’t for Reedus, baby!”  Norman had dinner with them and left for Lisa’s, kissing Riley on the top of her head.  When he left, she told Sean, “He said I have to take a week’s vacation as a condition of my employment.  You’re a bastard….thank you.”   
Sean just smiled and said, “When he realized that you hadn’t had a vacation, he agreed that you needed one.  After all, you even went back to New York with him and took care of him then.  Everybody needs time to recharge.  This will be yours.  I’ll be done with my TV movie in a month and don’t have another job lined up yet.  So why don’t we schedule for then?”

“So come down in 2 weeks for a weekend, then in another 2 weeks for a week?”   
“Yeah.  We can work out all the logistics tomorrow.”   
Riley was getting excited about it already.  She hadn’t been to Disneyland since she was a kid, and she had been afraid of rollercoasters back then.  The scariest rides she’d gone on were the spinning teacups and the Haunted Mansion, which she closed her eyes through most of.  Now she could go on the Matterhorn and Space Mountain and everything else.  And she could get a mouse ear hat!  She’d had one as a kid, but they’d moved a few times and it got lost.  Suddenly, Sean was waving his hand in front of her face.  “Earth to Riley.”  She shook herself out of her daydream and he smiled at her.  “Planning the trip already?”  She giggled.  “Sort of.”

They cleared the table and loaded the dishwasher, and Sean watched her.  She was still carrying the tension of the day.  “Hey pretty girl, how about we watch a movie and I give you that back rub I promised?”

 

They pulled up a movie on Netflix, and Riley took off her shirt and laid on the floor on her stomach.  Sean covered her with a blanket, sat on her rear end, and got to work.  He rubbed her shoulders, neck and upper back, and within about ten minutes, she was out cold.  He placed a soft kiss on her neck, then climbed off and laid next to her.  He watched the movie, sort of, but mostly he watched her.  Watched her steady breathing.  Watching her roll onto her side and curl up under the blanket.  Watched her smile in her sleep and wondered if she was dreaming about him.  When the movie ended, he reached under her to carry her to bed, but woke her up in the process.  “Sorry baby,” he said softly.  “You were sleeping so nice I didn’t want to wake you, but I guess I did anyway.”   
“Oh that’s ok.”   
He helped her up.  “How does your neck and shoulders feel?”   
Riley rolled her head and shoulders a bit.  “Better.  Much better, actually.  If this whole acting thing doesn’t work out, you could try massage therapy.’   
He just laughed.

 

Riley put her little tank top back on and they went into the bedroom.  Sean stripped down to his boxer briefs, and pulled out her chair from her vanity and sat down as she straightened up the bed in only her tank top and panties.  He sat there with his arms crossed and a little smile on his face.  She happened to look at him and asked, “What are you smiling at?”   
“You.  You’re really cute, little tics and all.”   
“I don’t have any tics.”   
“Yes you do.”   
“Name one.”   
“What you’re doing right now, making the bed before we get into it.”

Well he had her there.  “Well you have tics too.”   
“I do not!”   
“Yes you do!” Riley told him.  “When you get excited about things you talk really fast and sometimes stutter a bit!”   
Sean thought about it.  She was right.  He crooked his finger at her.  “Come here, little girl.”   
She walked over and stood in front of him.  “What do you want?”   
“You, pretty girl.  I always want you.”  He pulled her down for a kiss, and she straddled his lap.  Sean ran his hands up her thighs, over her hips, and grabbed that great ass of hers.   Riley sighed into the kiss, and he started kissing down her neck, asking, “Does this feel good, baby?”   
“Always….” 

He pulled her shirt off over her head, cupping her breasts, and gently pushing them together.  “Fuckin’ gorgeous,” he muttered, as he started to suck on them one at a time, making her nipples harden.  Riley reached down to the crotch of his boxer briefs and undid the one little button, pulling his rock hard length out.  He let her nipple slide out of his mouth and looked down as she yanked the crotch of her own panties to the side and lowered herself onto him.     
“Shit, Ri,” Sean breathed.  “Why does every time with you feel better than the last, huh?” 

 

She put one hand over his shoulder, grabbing into the high back of the chair, and the other behind her on his leg.  Slowly, she started to ride him, while he held on to her hips.  Sean’s eyes caught hers, and as always she looked away.  She had a problem with eye contact, but Sean was having none of it.

“No you don’t, Riley!  You look at me, don’t look away.  Don’t you dare…” he said, almost pleading.  Her eyes met his, and they both froze for a moment, then resumed.  They both felt something, not knowing the other felt it too.  And neither of them wanted to admit it or deal with it.  Too much, too soon.

Sean watched his beautiful Riley, rocking on his body, sweat starting to form on her forehead.  He reached up and wiped it away, pulling her to him and kissing her again and again, whispering, “My Riley….my Riley….”

She slid her hand down between their bodies and started rubbing her clit as she sped up on Sean’s lap.  “That’s right babygirl, make yourself cum, I wanna feel it.”

Her hand sped up and so did her body, Sean’s fingers digging into her hips as he felt her just barely beginning to flutter.  He put his hand around the back of her neck pulling her so close their lips were touching, and said softly,  “Scream my name, dirty little bitch.”

He knew he took a chance calling her that, but it worked.  Her eyes went wide, her body tightened up, and she screamed his name over and over, laced with profanities.

“Oh Sean...SEAN!  SEAN!!!!  OH FUCK, OH GOD, OH SEAN!!!  FUCK!  Fuckfuckfuck……”  

Riley stopped her twitching, and lifted herself off of his still throbbing dick.  He hadn’t cum yet.  Riley dropped down to her knees, looked up at him, and slipped his rod into her mouth.  He pushed her hair back so he could have a nice view of his cock, already wet from fucking her, now sliding in and out of her mouth.   “That’s it, babygirl,” he said softly.  It only took a few minutes for Sean to explode in Riley’s mouth, with her swallowing every drop.  He slumped back in the chair, eyes closed, heaving a sigh, and Riley rested her cheek on his thigh, as he stroked her hair and caught his breath.

Finally he opened his eyes and looked down at her, frowning.  “Get up here, sweetie.  You aren’t a dog.”  Riley smiled at him and climbed onto his lap.  He held her and stroked her back and they were both silent.

“Let’s go to bed, Ri.”

No answer.

“Ri?”   
She had fallen asleep right on his lap.  As gently as possible, he picked her up in his arms, carried her to the bed and laid her down.  Covering her up, he turned off the light and climbed into the other side, and slid close to her.  In her sleep, Riley snuggled up to him, and Sean smiled in the dark.

 

The next morning, they got on Sean’s phone and made flight reservations for Riley’s next trip and the week for her to go to DIsneyland.  “I hope you know,” Sean told her, “that Disneyland is on me.  I’ll pay for the tickets, the overpriced food and drinks, and mouse ears for you.”   
“But that will be so expensive.  And YOU have to wear mouse ears too.”   
“Me?  No way.”   
“Yes.  When you promised me you’d take me to Disneyland weeks ago you said, ‘I’ll even buy us mouse ears.’  ‘Us’ is you and me.  You promised.”   
Sean had the feeling that no matter what he did, no matter how many times he said no, he was going to end up walking around the Magic Kingdom wearing a stupid mouse ear hat.  All he said was, “Ugh, I’ll look stupid.”   
“Everyone else will be wearing them.  You’ll fit right in.”

She noticed he was booking her first class again, both ways on both flights.  She began, “Sean…”   
“Don’t start.  You’re flying first class and that’s that.”   
“But it’s expensive.”   
“Baby, I’ve got literally thousands of frequent flier miles that I am using for this.  And even if I was paying out of my own damn pocket, you would still fly first class.  Remember how you told me in your 20’s you flew back and forth from California to Colorado a few times?  You flew coach, and it was a 2 ½ hour flight each way.  And you told me how it hurt your back so bad.  This is a 5 hour flight.  By the time you landed, you would be in agony.  I don’t want that.  I want you to be comfortable.”   
“Well why not fly me business class?”   
He smiled at her.  “It’s not nearly fancy enough for my girl.  First class has bigger and better seats.  After all, I wouldn’t want my Georgia peach to get bruised.”

 

The day went by too quickly.  They had a great time making fun of Norman as he limped through the front door.  He tried to say that he pulled a hammy tripping over a lawn sprinkler, but he looked like Lisa had run him ragged.  He finally admitted that yes, he was a little worn out, and that maybe, possibly, he’d been a little overzealous and hurt his leg.   He muttered, “And yes, I am sorry for laughing at your limp now.”

 

It finally was time to take Sean back to the airport.  Norman asked her, “Are you sure you’ll be ok?”  She assured him she would, and they were off.  Sean was unusually quiet and finally mumbled, “I don’t want to go.”   
“I don’t want you to go either.  But you have to go back to work.”   
“Come with me.”   
Riley sighed.  “You know I can’t.  I have to work too.  At least if I want to continue to have a job and a place to live.”   
“I know.  And I know it’s ‘only’ 12 days.  I just hate this being apart shit.”   
Riley got quiet, then asked, “Are you trying to tell me something?”   
“What?  NO!  No, baby!  I hate being apart because I’d rather be with you.  I’m happier when you’re around.  I sleep better when you sleep next to me.  Every time we have to go our separate ways, my heart breaks all over again.”   
“This isn’t a picnic for me, either,” she said, pulling into the short-term parking.

Sean ran a hand through his hair.  “I know.  Shit.  I’m sorry, baby.  I’m just being selfish.  I want you with me all the time.  Every time you leave, I feel like I’m going through withdrawals.”

He got out of the car, picking up his bag and taking Riley’s hand.  “I mope around the house for days, all depressed.  I sleep on your pillow because it smells like you.”   
“I should give you a bottle of my perfume or something.”   
“That’s not the smell on the pillow though.  It’s just….you.  Also….I stole your pillowcase from the house,” he added sheepishly.

“That’s ok.  Your suitcase is missing two t shirts,” she smiled back.

  
Riley did for Sean what he did for her at LAX, waited at the security line as he went through.  He kept looking back at her like his heart was breaking.  Then he was down the hall so far, and he turned and waved before he disappeared around the corner.  Riley took a deep breath.  Being the “watcher” was harder than being the “watchee”.  She got back in Herbie and headed back to Senoia.


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back home after 5 horrible days in Texas - was there to take care of my deceased father's belongings. Got sick and had to go to the ER, then our flight home was cancelled and we had to hang out in the airport for SEVEN hours, we have to go back today because our luggage didn't make it, & the antibiotics I got at the ER are WAY too strong and making me sick! BUT I'm back home and being sick at home is better than being sick at a hotel!

The week dragged by.  Sean was trying to finish up the TV movie in time for her Disneyland trip, so there were a lot of late nights for him.  They were Facetiming whenever he had a few minutes.  Not ideal, but Riley knew her trips there were important to him as well as her, and he wanted them to be as special as possible.

On the Thursday before her weekend trip, she went to see her therapist.  They were cutting down her visits to hopefully none.  Her therapist had an interesting “homework” project for Riley.  When Norman got home, dinner was ready, and Riley was sitting at the kitchen table scribbling furiously in a spiral notebook.  “Hey Ri, what’s that?”

She looked up at him.  “Um….homework.”   
“Homework?  From where?”   
“Therapy.”   
He was very confused, and at the same time didn’t want to pry.  Riley closed the notebook as he sat down with his plate.   “She wants me to write about….my experience.  Starting from when I left Portland to now.”   
“Why does she want you to do that?”   
“Because I survived.  She thinks that maybe….maybe I could write a book about it.  Help other people.”   
Norman looked at Riley.  “Is that something YOU want to do?”   
“Yeah.  I was actually the one who brought it up.  Did you know that I wrote a column for the school paper in college back in California?”   
“No, I didn’t!” he smiled.

“Yep.  And I won an award from the state for it!” she was smiling, too.

Norman’s eyes got big.  “You never told me that!  Why aren’t you writing for the New York Times or some big magazine?”

Her smile faded.  “Journalism is a dying art.  And I tried to write for just our local paper, they didn’t want me.  Sent copies of my articles out to other places.  Nobody wanted me to write for them.”

Norman was floored.  Here he thought he knew just about everything about Riley.  “How come you never told me about all that?”   
She shrugged her shoulders.  “It was lifetime ago.  And I didn’t graduate anyway.  Maybe that’s why I didn’t get hired.  I thought by now I’d be the next Erma Bombeck.  Instead I’m just Joe Schmo.”   
A thought crossed Norman’s mind.  “If this becomes like a bestseller or something, you won’t be Joe Schmo anymore.  You hid from the media after the story went public…”   
“Because I didn’t want to give them some shit interview that they’d probably misquote me on.  And a bestseller?  Aren’t we putting the cart WAY before the horse?  I’ve only written 5 pages.  It could take me months, years, to write this.  I would also need both you and Sean to sign off on it since you were both part of it.  And then I’d need to find if there was even a place that wanted to publish it.  There are lots of books by survivors.  If mine got published, it would be one of many, might get lost in the shuffle.  I’d love it if it got published.  I want people to know that your life doesn’t end after you get hurt.  You can come back from this.  And you can still find someone who will care about you….maybe even love you.”

Norman was shocked.  “Did you really think that no one would love you?  So many of us do-”   
Riley shot him a look.  “Different kind of love.”   
Recognition dawned on him, “Oh.  You know Sean cares a lot for you, right?”   
“Yes.  Maybe one day he’ll actually love me.  It’s way too soon.  But even if he doesn’t, even if this weird relationship we have completely falls apart….it’s ok.  It’s not because of what happened.  And that won’t keep someone out there from loving me.  My mom used to say ‘Every pot has a lid.’  I just need to find my lid.”

Norman smiled at that.  Riley was a smart cookie, and not only was she was taking care of herself, she was taking care of him, too.  He pulled her into a big bear hug and she laughed.  “What’s that for?”   
“I’m just proud of you, that’s all.”

“I’m kinda proud of me, too, boss man.”

 

She packed and was off to L.A. the next day, and slept most of the way there.  As before, Sean was waiting by the escalators, and Riley jumped into his arms and kissed him.  “Missed you so much,” he murmured against her lips.  “Do you get tired of me jumping up on you?” she asked.

“Never.  Now let’s get you home so I can jump on you!”

Sean drove home with his hand on Riley’s leg and a smile on his face.  Riley asked, “Have you talked to Norman?”   
“Not lately, why?”   
“Well….I’ve started to write a book!”   
“Hey that’s great!  What kind of book?”   
“A book about what happened.  It’s starting from when I left Portland up to...well, now I guess.”   
Sean smile disappeared as he turned down his street.  “Why would you want to write a book about that?”   
Sean parked the car but made no move to get out.  He just looked straight ahead.  Finally he said, “Are you sure that’s a good idea?  You hid from all the publicity, Ri.  Nobody even knows what you look like.  I’m surprised that no one sold you out in Senoia.  Why would you want to write a book and out yourself?”

Riley took a breath.  She thought he’d be excited or happy.  Instead, he was just shitting on her.  She was silent, and opened the car door.

Sean knew he’d upset her.  “Ri, talk to me.”

She stayed silent and just walked to the front door, waiting for him since he had the key.  He walked up next to her.  “Ri…”   
“Could you open the door, please?  It was a long flight, I’d like to lay down.”

Sean opened the door, and Riley headed for the stairs.  He grabbed her arm, stopping her.  She shot him a hateful look.  “Let go of me.”   
“No!  What the hell is going on?”

Riley yanked her arm away from Sean, so he pinned her against the wall.  “Let go of me, Sean!”

“Not until you tell me what the hell is wrong with you!”

He had his arms caging her in so she couldn’t go anywhere, she was pushing at his chest and shoulders, but he was like a brick wall.  Unable to think of anything else, Riley reached up and tried to slap him.  He blocked her, grabbing her wrist and growling, “You hit me once, girl.  Don’t EVER try that again.”  Riley had never seen him so angry.  Sean dropped his hands from blocking her in, and took a few steps backwards.  He took a few deep breaths, then whispered at her, “Riley, what’s going on here?  I don’t understand.”

Riley sank down to the floor.  “Sean, I NEED to write this.  Why don’t you want me to?”   
“Because I swore I’d do everything I could to protect you.  And I’ve done everything to keep you anonymous: I’ve cropped your face out of pictures, I blurred your name off the necklace when I posted it….if it gets published, it will put you right out in the spotlight.  I can’t keep my promise to protect you.  I wish I could.”  He gave a sad chuckle and continued, “I seriously considered just kidnapping you away to some deserted island, where it would be just you and me.”

“Maybe it will help other people who have gone through it.  Also, and I know this is a long shot, but IF it gets published and I make some money…..then maybe I could afford to live out here.  I could be closer to you.”

He looked at her, looking so sad and lost sitting on the floor by the stairs.  He hadn’t thought of that.  One of her reasons was for him.  He walked over to her and sat down on the floor in front of her.  “Shit, Ri.  I never thought of that. Honestly.” He ran his hands through his hair.  “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”   
“No.  I’m so sorry I tried to slap you.  That wasn’t cool.”   
“No, but I don’t think either one of us was thinking.  I’m sorry too, baby.”

Riley started to sniffle.  “Honey, please don’t cry,” he told her, “it breaks my heart.”

“I’m not crying because of you.  I’m crying because I acted like a bitch to you!”

Sean laughed.  He picked her up like she was nothing, sat down on the stairs, and put her in his lap.  “Sweetie, considering all the shit I’ve put you through, I think you owe me a couple of instances of being a bitch!”  Riley giggled, and Sean continued, “But no more silent treatment or avoidance, ok?  You shut down and shut me out for a minute there.  And it kind of scared me when you tried to hit me.”   
“Would you have hit me back?”   
“Never!  I would either block it or, if I had to, stand there and take it.  I was raised to never hit a woman.  Too bad not everybody was,” he said, softly.

 

Riley shifted on his lap so she was straddling him.  She whispered softly in his ear, “My sexy southern gentleman.”   
He pulled back, looked her in the eye, and said, “My Riley.”

She pulled his face towards hers for a kiss, but instead of heated one, Sean took control, and kissed her softly and gently.  “Sean?”   
“Shh, baby.  Here, stand up.”   
She stood and he did as well.  Without another word, he picked her up in his arms, carried her upstairs, and laid her gently on the bed.  He unlaced her sneakers and took them off, then kicked off his own shoes, and climbed on the bed, laying on top of her.  Riley looked confused.  “Don’t we have too many clothes on?”   
Sean smiled at her.  “When was the last time you made out like a horny teenager?”   
“Probably when I WAS a horny teenager.”   
“Well, I think hot little make out sessions are underrated.  And I really, really like kissing you, and I really, really like the way you kiss me.  What do you say?  Got plenty of time this weekend and later tonight for naked time.  Wanna play kissy face with me?”   
“Oh hell yeah!”

 

Sean laced his fingers through Riley’s and pinned her arms above her head.  He dipped his head down to hers and again kissed her very gently.  It was different - he was usually very hot and passionate.  This was hot and passionate as well….but in a different way.  It was truly nice.  

He started at her lips and slowly kissed his way across her jaw and down her neck.  He looked up at Riley, her eyes were closed and her cheeks were flushed.  “You doing ok there, Ri?”   
“Yeah, that feels really good.”

He continued kissing along her neck, hearing her breath hitch in a few spots.  Those are the spots he went back to, nipping and licking and sucking, taking care not to leave a mark.  “Sean, you’re killing me…” she whispered.  Sean just chuckled.  “You are VERY much alive, girl,” he kissed his way back up her neck.  “...and so warm…” he whispered in her ear, making her shiver.  “...and your skin tastes so sweet…”

Riley flipped them over so she was on top.  “My turn.”

She kissed him the same way he’d kissed her, softly, gently, lips just barely grazing his.  When she did it to him, when he let her take control, he knew why she’d gotten so worked up over it.  He fought the urge to just grab her and deepen the kiss on his own.  This was one of the few times she was in control, and he liked it.  Riley whispered in his ear, “You’re getting all flushed, you ok?”   
“Hell yeah, baby.  You’re amazing.”

She started working her way down his neck, and as far down his chest as his tank top would allow.  Sean was in Riley’s place now: eyes closed, face flushed, breath coming in soft gasps.  His fingers still laced with hers, Riley pinning them down.  She placed a soft, open mouthed kiss to the center of his chest, and he let out a quiet moan and bit his lip.  Riley ran her tongue from his chest up to his chin in one long lick.  Sean’s back arched and he breathed out, “Fuck, Riley…”

She leaned down to kiss him, but every time he tried to kiss back, she pulled away.  She was straddling him and could feel him getting hard.  Exasperated, he said, “Dammit, girl, let me kiss you back!”

Riley batted her eyes innocently and said, “You wanted to make out like horny teenagers.  I didn’t lose my virginity until I was almost 18, but I was the make out queen.  And kind of a tease…”  As she told him that last part, she bounced lightly on his crotch.  

Sean looked at her, totally blank faced.  Without warning, he flipped them so he was on top.  Lowering his face so their noses were touching,he said, “I can tease, too, you know….”

He leaned down and kissed her more passionately this time, slipping his tongue between her parted lips.  But she she tried to kiss back, he pulled away.  Doing this several times, he smiled at her frustration.  He moved down to her neck again, and as he kissed all of her sensitive spots, he started to softly grind against her, and she wrapped her legs around him.  Riley kept trying to reach for him, but he held her hands down.  Moving lower, he softly mouthed over her nipple, making it hard in a millisecond, and causing her to arch her back and loudly cry out, “SEAN!”

Flicking his eyes over to the clock, he realized they’d been making out and teasing for over 2 hours.

“What do you need, Riley? Tell me what you want.”   
“I want you.”   
“You’ve got me.”   
“Sean….”   
“Tell me….”   
Riley took a breath.  “I”m tired of playing horny teenagers.  I want to fuck like adults.”   
Sean smiled down at her.  “I love the way you say fuck.”   
“Well good.  Because I want you to fuck me hard!”   
Sean’s eyebrows went up at that.  It was so rare for her to talk like that, it made his already hard cock twitch.

He released her hands, and she grabbed him and pulled him in for a long delayed, proper kiss.  “Come on, Sean,” she said between kisses.  “Let’s get naked and fuck.”


	30. Chapter 30

Sean sat up on his heels, and Riley sat up, pulling his tank top over his head, then he pulled off her shirt as well.  They were moving quickly now, desperate for each other, practically ripping each other's clothes off.  Riley pulled her shorts and panties off together, and Sean pulled his down just enough for his unit to come out.  He was on Riley and entered her quickly, both of them crying out.   
“Oh god yes,” Riley breathed in his ear.

Sean pumped slowly into her, trying hard to keep control.  Riley tightened her legs around him and begged him, “Please faster!”  Well, he couldn’t ignore a request like that.  He pushed himself up on his arms so he could look at her, he loved looking at her all the time, but especially when she came.  Her back would arch, her legs would shake, those lips of hers would open and let out the most beautiful sounds….occasionally laced with profanity.

He gently pulled one of her legs up to his shoulder, penetrating her even deeper, and sped up.  He turned his head and kissed her calf, lowering himself closer to her on his elbows.  Taking her face in his hands, he kissed her, and told her, “Please open those beautiful eyes, baby.”  She did as he asked, and he froze momentarily when she did.  Her dark eyes were almost black, a sure sign of lust, but he saw something in them.  Some kind of emotion….a lot of it.  For the first time, Sean was the one that looked away.  He wasn’t ready, and he was sure she wasn’t either.  It was too soon to have such strong feelings….even if they had known each other for a long time.  He pushed it out of his mind as he pushed himself harder inside of her.

Faster and faster as Riley held tightly to him, making those wonderful sounds he loved so much: moans, sighs, and his favorite, his own name spilling from her lips.  Still on his elbows, he took her face into his hands.  “Riley….fuck Riley….”  She could hear the desperation in his voice.     
“Sean, look at me, please.”  He looked at her and she could see, he was overcome and confused and a million other things all at once.   
“Sean?”   
He ducked his face into her neck and started to really pound into her.  He felt her tighten up around him, and knew he was on the right track.  He was muttering nonsense in her ear, and she was loving it.  “Oh god, oh Riley, babydoll….so good, so good…”  Riley pushed up against him.  Taking a deep breath, she felt herself hover on the edge of her orgasm, and warned him, “I’m gonna cum.”   
“Cum for me babygirl!  Cum HARD!” he commanded, pushing her leg on his shoulder back even farther, causing her to cry out, “OH GOD!”

He pushed himself deeply inside of her, right up against her cervix, and came as hard as he’d wanted her to.  They shuddered and clutched at each other, crying out, and soaking the sheets.  Sean still had his face hidden in Riley’s neck as he lowered her leg.  She had her arms around him, and tried to get him to look at her.  Face still in her neck, he just shook his head.  

“Sean, look at me.”   
*head shake no*   
“Are you ok?”   
*pause, then a nod yes*   
“Did I do something wrong?”   
*vigorous head shake no*

“Sean, dammit,” she pulled his head out of her neck by his hair.  “What the hell….oh Sean, what’s wrong?”   
Sean had been trying to calm down.  He knew he had tears in his eyes.  He didn’t need Riley to see it. 

“Nothing’s wrong.  Just intense is all,” he said as he slid his soft dick out of her.  He stood up and immediately started getting dressed.

“Sean?”   
“I’m fine, Riley!” he snapped, a little harsher than he meant.  He saw the hurt on her face, and felt like an asshole.  “Shit, I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean to snap like that.”

“What’s going on?”   
He was quiet, and she threw his own words at him.  “Sean, ‘no more silent treatment or avoidance’, remember?  Talk to me.”   
  


Sitting next to her on the bed, he ran his hands through his hair.  “I’m really not sure, doll.  I just...sometimes when I look at you, I get...overwhelmed, I guess.  I’m not used to that.  Lots of feels.  Does that make any sense?”

“Yeah.  I thought maybe it was my scars.  I tend to forget about them in Senoia, and everyone there is used to them.  But then I come here, and appearance is everything.  I see people looking sometimes.  I worry that maybe I embarrass you.”   
Sean was staring at her strangely, then softly said, “I don’t even see your scars anymore.”

“You don’t?”   
“No, and you sure as hell don’t embarrass me.  Don’t ever be ashamed.  You survived, and that’s all that I care about.  You survived, and you’re here with me.  That’s all I need.”

Riley, still naked as the day she was born, threw her arms around his neck.  “Thank you, Sean.  Does that mean it’s ok for me to wear shorts to Disneyland next visit?”   
“Absolutely.  Now please put some clothes on or we will never leave the bed, and I’m starving.”

 

The weekend, as always, passed far too quickly.  They were both a little depressed.  Riley would be gone for 15 days instead of 12.  She had insisted on working the Saturday and Sunday that she would usually come down to help make up for being gone for so long.  Norman had tried to talk her out of it, but she could not be dissuaded.  It was just as well.  Sean would be working all week, finishing up his TV movie Friday or Saturday.  He might have missed some time with her.  He had told the production company that they needed to be done by that Monday, as he had a prior commitment, and that he’d be willing to work late to make it up if needed.  She was flying out Monday morning, and they were going to Disneyland on Tuesday, one of the least crowded days, and possibly Universal Studios or California Adventure on Wednesday or Thursday if they felt up to it.  Riley would be there an entire week, flying in Monday morning, then going back to Atlanta the following Monday.

 

Sean took her to the airport and watched her walk down the hall.  She turned to wave goodbye, and her heart broke.  She could see him standing there in his white t-shirt and blue jeans, hands in his pockets.  Although she couldn’t quite see his face, his body language was of a miserable man: slouched over, head hanging.  She waved, he waved back, and she was gone.  Sean heaved a sigh, and headed out to the car.  This couldn’t go on like this.  He felt like every time she left, he died a little inside.  He spent the majority of his time missing her.

 

As for Riley, she was working herself ragged.  9 to 5, she worked for Norman, as always.  Then 5 to 9, she was writing her book.  At 9, she’d stop to Skype with Sean until 11 or midnight.  If he wasn’t able to Skype, he’d Facetime with her when he could during the day for a few minutes here and there, and Riley would still be up until midnight or later writing.  Norman came out of his room once at 2 am to get some water, and saw her bedroom light on and could hear her tapping away at her keyboard.  He worried about how exhausted she was some days.  She was going to need that week in L.A.

 

One night at about 7, Riley approached Norman.    
“Hey boss man?”   
“Yeah?”   
“If I gave you some of the stuff I wrote, would you read it and let me know what you think?”

Norman looked at her, nervously wringing her hands.  “Ri, I’d be honored to read something you wrote.”

She disappeared into her room and came back with a small stack of papers.  “It’s the first 25 pages.  I know it’s a lot.  Just, you know, when you get a minute.”  She went back in her room, and Norman started reading.

 

It covered her leaving Portland and driving cross country, including her stop in New Orleans at Mardi Gras.  He laughed at the passage, “The whole boobies for beads thing was lost on me, and I had the fewest beads of anyone I saw.  I considered buying some, but all the stores were cleaned out.  I just couldn’t trade a flash of my ta-ta’s for trinkets.”

He smiled when she recounted how her car broke down in Senoia and she sweet talked her way into tending bar at Bailey’s, and later how scared she was when the place burned down - she was now without a job and needed to pay her rent.  He loved how she referred to Norman and Sean as her best friends.

And his heart broke when she recounted what Kevin had done.  All the fear and pain she had gone through was there in black and white.  How she had wondered if she was going to die, and being sure that she would.  Being left for dead in that field full of weeds and garbage, and calling Norman.  Shivering in cold and fear, afraid that Kevin would come back and finish her off before Norman and Sean got there.  Norman actually found himself thinking,  _  ‘Hurry up and get to her, you guys!’ _  Her relief when they finally found her, knowing that she was safe.  And last, her telling Sean that it was indeed Kevin who had done this to her.

Norman turned that last page and sat there for a long time.  He was furious at Kevin all over again.  And his heart broke for Riley all over again.  He had to remind himself that it was all over, that Kevin couldn’t hurt her or anybody else ever again.  She had made sure of that.  He gathered up the pages and walked to her room.  The door was open and she was typing away.

“Hey Ri.”   
She looked up at him with a small smile.  “Did you read a little bit?”   
“I read all of it.”   
“Really?”   
“Yep.  Definitely a page turner.  Couldn’t put it down, even though I know how it goes.  When I read the part about you calling us to come for you, I was thinking, ‘They need to hurry!’”   
Riley smiled at that.  He continued, “You’re ok with writing this?”   
“Yeah. It’s actually helping.”   
“It’s good, Ri.  It’s really good.  You really have a gift for writing.  You paint a picture with words, and that’s something else.”

Riley blushed at his compliment.  “You really think it’s good?”   
“I do.  I’d be proud to have my name associated with it.  Sean will, too.”   
“Oh, I don’t know about that.  He did a few things that looked bad.”   
“His own fault, Ri.  And he knows it.  Believe me, he and I have talked at length about everything.  He’ll sign off on it.  He knows he was wrong.”   
Riley thought for a moment, then smiled.  “Maybe I can have him write a forward or something.  Explaining why he was a jerk.”   
Norman laughed.  “There you go.”  He handed her the stack of papers.  “It’s really good, Ri.  Really really good.”

 

Not long after Norman left, Sean Facetimed her.  She told him about the writing and what Norman had said.  He asked her if he could read it too, so she emailed him what she had so far, and he promised to try and read a little bit when he got a chance.

The next day, he Facetimed her at 11 a.m.

“Hi Sean.”   
“Finish that book.”   
“What?”   
“You need to get it all written and start looking for publishers.  It’s good, baby.  DAMN good.”   
Riley was silent, then said, “Sean, you gotta remember...you weren't exactly a good guy.  And it was a long time before I understood why you did the things you did.  That’s going to be reflected in this.”   
“Riley, write the damn book.  I know I was an asshole.  But this is important.  It’s really good baby.”   
She smiled at him.  “Thanks.  Coming from you and Norm, those are great compliments.  Both of you are published, and you think I’m good enough to be published, too.”

“You are, sweetie.  And you were right all along, this is important.  I talked to Norm the other day and he said you’ve been staying up late writing?”   
“Yeah, sometimes.  I kind of get in the zone.”   
“Can you do me a favor?”   
“Of course.”   
“Don’t bring it with you to work on when you visit.  I DO want you to write it, but this is a vacation.  I want you to do as little as possible, and truly relax.  Can you promise that for me, Ri?”   
She gave him a big smile.  “Yes, sir.  I promise.”   
“Good girl.”  He looked behind him as someone called out his name.  “Ok, they need me on set babygirl.  I’ll talk to you soon.”  He smooched at the camera, she did the same, and he hung up.  

Riley just sat quietly for a few minutes.  Both Sean and Norman thought she could get published.  Was it really that good?  Could she really help people by telling her story? 

She still loved to write...could she maybe make some kind of living off of it?

 

As far as it went, she still needed to make a living now.  She put her phone in her pocket and went back to cleaning the house, with a big smile on her face.


	31. Chapter 31

A few days before her big L.A. trip, Riley and Norman were having dinner and she asked, “Hey, why did Sean and his wife split up?”

Norman didn’t answer at first.  He wasn’t really sure what to say.  Lauren had almost destroyed Sean, just out of her own insecurity.  

“You should probably ask Sean, sweetie.”   
“Don’t you know?”   
“Yeah, but it isn’t my story to tell.”

 

At 9:00 on the dot, Sean Skyped her.  He looked exhausted.  He’d been working 12 - 16 hour days just so he could have his week with her.   
“Oh Seanie, you look exhausted!”   
“I am, babygirl.  Don’t know how long I’ll last tonight, but I wanted to see you.  We’re all done.  I think I’m gonna sleep for a whole day,” he told her rubbing his eyes.

Riley bit her lip.  She wanted to ask him about his divorce, but he was so tired.     
Sean stopped rubbing his eyes and looked at her, then leaned forward and looked closer.  “What’s going on, angel?  You look upset.  You’re still coming on Monday, right?” he asked, suddenly nervous.

“Yeah I am.  I just had a question, but you’re so tired….and I don’t want to bring up bad memories….”

“Ask away.”   
Riley heaved a sigh.  “Why did you and your wife split up?  I mean, I know you told me she had some odd quirks, like not letting you see her without makeup, but that can’t be why….” she trailed off as she looked at Sean.  He looked upset. Not angry, not sad, just...upset.

“Why?”   
“Because we’re together.  I think I have a right to know.”   
“It’s ancient history, Ri.  She moved back to Arizona with her family.  I don’t pay alimony or even have any contact with her or anything.  She’s not a part of my world and never will be again.”   
“I understand that.”   
“Then why the fuck do you want to know?” he demanded.  Looking at Riley’s face, shocked at his outburst, he felt like a dick.  She had a right to know.  He wasn’t even at fault.  Running a hand through his hair, he told her, “I’m sorry, baby.  You’re right.  It’s just painful.”   
Riley softly asked, “Does it hurt because you still have feelings for her?”   
“No!  No.  It hurts because….she cheated on me.  A whole bunch of times.”   
Riley’s heart broke for him.  She’d dated guys in the past who had cheated, but they hadn’t been married.  “Oh Sean.  I’m so sorry.”   
“I was always off doing conventions.  I had to, it was always in my contract, especially for Boondock Saints.  That movie took on a life of it’s own.  She got it into her head that I was screwing around, but I wasn’t.  I NEVER did.  I took my wedding vows very seriously.  So I was off, fulfilling my obligations, doing what I could to keep my name out there so I could keep working….and she was at home fucking around.  In OUR bed.  I’ll have you know, when she left, I got rid of all of that: the frame, the mattresses, the pillows, even the sheets and blankets.  You are the first girl to have ever slept in my bed.  And I like it that way.”   
“I really am sorry.  I’ve been cheated on, but just by boyfriends, not a spouse.  That must have been a terrible time for you.”   
“Yeah.  I mean there were red flags, but you try to ignore them.  Missed Skype calls from me that she was supposed to be waiting for.   She bought new lingerie, but would rarely wear it for me.  Phone calls she would take in another room.  I didn’t want to think that’s what she was doing.  But I got sick at a con once and came home early.  Had she answered her damn phone or checked her voicemails, she would have known I was on my way.  I got home and there was a strange car in the driveway.  I didn’t think too much of it, thought maybe one of her girlfriends had stopped by or was staying over with her.  Turns out, it was one of the guys she was fucking.  I caught them in bed together and threw his skinny ass out of my house.”   
Riley was near tears, and so was Sean.  He wasn’t sad Lauren was gone, but he hated that he’d been a fool for so long.

“I don’t understand why she would do that to you.  It makes no sense.”   
“Oh no,” Sean interjected, “to her it made PERFECT sense.  She was sure that I was screwing around on her at these cons.  I went to bed alone every night.  It wasn’t like I didn’t have a chance, either.  Do you have any idea how many hotel keys girls slipped me?  How many times I was propositioned?  But I was married and I loved my wife.  I married her for a reason.  She said she ‘knew’ I was cheating because I stopped wearing my wedding ring.  I couldn’t wear it anymore because I broke my finger sparring.  I was going to get my ring resized so I could wear it properly.  But I wore it on my chain with my Saint Christopher medal.  I just wasn’t in one place long enough with all the travelling to get my ring fixed.  I wore it, but I couldn’t wear it on my finger.  You know what the worst part is?”   
Riley shook her head no, almost in tears.   
“When I got sick and went home, I stopped at the jewelry store first.  I dropped off the ring to get it resized properly.  I wanted to wear it again to make her happy.  I never picked it back up.  Told the guy to sell it, keep the money.  I didn’t even want to look at it again after that.  I just couldn’t.”  He was crying now and didn’t even care.  But he did let Riley know, “I’m not crying because she’s gone.  I’m crying because I was a fool.”

 

Riley had tears running down her face.  “Sean, I’m so sorry you went through that.”   
“I never cheated on her, baby.  And I would never cheat on you.  Even that night when I stood you up, that blonde was all over me, and I just wanted her to go away.  I’m a one woman kind of guy.  I’m not interested in fakes, or phonies, or...what was it you called that girl? A starfucker?  Yeah, not interested in starfuckers.”  He smiled at her.  “I’m interested in smart girls, who are fiercely independent, and ask me to sing them some Elvis once in awhile.”   
Riley laughed through her tears.  “I think I know a girl like that.  I should introduce you.”

Sean reached his hand out to touch her face on the screen.  “I will do my best to never hurt you again, Riley-girl.  You mean the world to me.”   
“The feeling is mutual.”   
  
Sean had to hang up, as he was almost falling asleep.  But he went to bed with a smile on his face.  He hated telling the story, but she’d had a right to know.  And he felt better now that she did.  He had told her the truth, and she understood.  Lauren was gone.  He’d changed his number and blocked hers.  Last he’d heard, she was dating some guy who managed a grocery store.  Good for her.  He was dating an amazing woman.  He came out ahead.

 

Riley felt better knowing it as well.  She had wondered.  It also made her feel better that he didn’t even have any contact with her.  A girl like that didn’t deserve someone like Sean.

 

Riley spent most of Saturday and Sunday cooking for Norman.  She made sure that he and Lisa had plenty of food, labeling everything she made and leaving instructions on reheating.  Sean didn’t call or Skype Saturday, but she knew he was exhausted.  Early Sunday he Facetimed her.

“Baby, I’m so sorry!  I ended up sleeping 12 hours, getting up and eating, then passing out on the couch for another 5 hours!”   
“It’s okay,” Riley laughed, “I figured that’s what happened.”

“You excited about tomorrow?”   
“YES!  I get a REAL vacation, and I get to spend it with a hot guy!”   
“Hot guy?  Anyone I know?”   
“Yeah, that 5 million year old guy on your block who is always out watering his lawn.  He’s a babe.”   
Sean just rolled his eyes.

They went over Riley’s flight itinerary, and he told her to pack lots of shorts, as it was due to be hot all week.  She reminded him that they would actually have to wait at the luggage carousel this time, as she had to bring enough clothes for the whole week.  “So maybe I shouldn’t jump on you.”   
“Are you kidding me?  I love it when you do that!  And we’ve been apart for 15 days!  I deserve to be jumped on!”   
“But you said it gives you a hard on.”   
“So what?  I’ll live, I promise.  I’ll just have to fuck you as soon as we get home.”

 

Riley went to bed early that night after packing and double checking everything.  Norman dropped her at the airport, watching to make sure her curbside check in went smoothly, then blowing her a kiss and driving off.  She boarded her flight, and as soon as she was able, she texted him, “On my way, so excited!  Mouse ear hats tomorrow, BOTH of us!”   
He replied, “You’re really going to make me wear one?”   
“YES I AM.”

“You’re lucky I like you so much.”   
“Hahaha.  Gonna nap, see you soon.”

 

Sean put his phone in his pocket smiling.  Damn mouse ear hats.  But if it made Riley happy, it would be worth it.  Hell, he’d get one of those princess makeovers if she wanted him too.  Anything for her.  He stopped in the middle of putting dishes in the dishwasher at that thought.  ‘Anything for her.’  Yep, he meant it.  He was crazy about her.  He sat himself down and had a good, long think.  When she left he was sad and mopey for days.  When she was there, he felt like everything was right in the world.  He wanted her to stay.  He knew it was still too soon….or was it?  They’d known each other for something like two years.  They’d lived together at Norman’s, sort of.  But sharing a house like roommates was much different from sharing your bed and your life like lovers.  The alarm on his phone went off, letting him know it was time to drive to the airport.  He had seven days, and he was going to make every moment count.

 

Sean waited at the bottom of the escalator, as far as he was allowed to go without a ticket.  He missed the old days, where you could go right up to the gate.  He had friends who remembered their dads taking them to the airport to see the planes when they were kids….no ticket necessary.  Back then you emptied your pockets into a bowl and walked through a metal detector.  Now you emptied every damn thing you had into a bucket that was xrayed, took off your shoes, and walked through a machine that took a naked picture of you.  And sometimes you still got patted down.  People started to filter down...where was Riley?  She was usually one of the first.  He was about to call her cell when he saw her legs come into view.  He’d know those gorgeous legs anywhere.  He also noticed an older man and woman staring at her from behind. The man pointed at her and said something to a woman with him who nodded.  They were looking at her scars.  Riley was either oblivious or ignoring them, and when he came into view, she rushed the rest of the way and jumped into his arms, kissing him.  “Did you miss me?” she asked.   
“Every second you were gone, angel.  What took you so long?  You’re usually one of the first people?”   
“There were some armed forces personnel getting off the plane.  It seemed only right to let them go first.”   
Another reason why he was crazy about her: she was good hearted.

 

The wait at the luggage carousel had never seemed so long. They were both antsy, wanting to get home and get naked.  They’d been apart for 15 days instead of their customary 12, and every day had felt like a lifetime.  Finally her suitcase came down the line.  Sean grabbed it with one hand, took her hand in the other, and all but ran to the car.  When they got there, he shoved her suitcase in the backseat, then pushed her up against the car door, and kissed her hotly, slipping his tongue between her lips.  In between kisses he told her, “If there weren’t so many people around, I’d fuck you right up against this door.”   
“No you wouldn’t.  They still have security cameras all over.”   
“Give the poor sap who has to watch it something worth looking at.”

 

Instead they climbed in and Sean drove as quickly as he could without going over the speed limit, with one hand on her thigh.  Both of them were tense, wanting to get home.  Screaming into his driveway, he left her suitcase in the car, pulling her out and running for the house.  Riley was unbuttoning her shorts as he unlocked the door, and as soon as he got it unlocked, she ran inside and dropped her shorts and panties, stepping out of them as Sean pressed her against the wall face first.  Within just a second, his pants were open, hard cock out.  Riley was bent over against the wall, legs open, and he quickly lined himself up with her slick entrance.  “Hurry, Sean!” Riley begged, and Sean slammed himself into her, both of them crying out.

He didn’t hesitate, ramming her hard and fast, and Riley still cried out, “Harder!”  Sean had one hand on her shoulder and one on her hip.  Had she always felt so good?  “Babygirl, I’m already close!”   
“Me, too…”   
Sean slid his hand from her hip around to her clit and started rubbing it furiously.  He felt her flutter, heard her gasp, and then she slammed her legs shut, squeezing him even tighter.  Riley screamed his name down the hallway as her legs shook.  Sean grabbed her around her waist, knowing her legs would give out, then came so hard he saw stars.  They slid to the floor, Sean still buried in her, breathing heavily.   “Ri, you okay?” he asked her softly.  “Was I too rough?”   
She looked at him over her shoulder and smiled.  “I’m fine.  That was...intense, but not too rough.  We needed that.”   
“Fuck yeah we did.  I missed you, angel.”   
Riley smiled, “I missed you too, baby.  Lots.”

 

Sean finally pulled himself out of her, fastening his pants so he could go out and fetch her suitcase.  When he came back, she was laying on the couch, and informed him, “I was going to make dinner, but I’m so tired.  Can we order out?”   
Sean offered to go get sandwiches from Subway.  Riley looked at him, “Do they deliver?”   
“Subway?  No.  It’s only a few miles.  We can call in an order, and they’ll be ready by the time I get there.”   
Riley said nothing, but Sean didn’t like the look on her face.  He took her hand and spoke softly.  “Ri?  What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?”   
She swallowed hard and said, “You’re coming back, right?  You’ll come right back, right?”

Sean felt like an asshole.  And it was his own fault.  “I promise I’m coming back.  After all, I live here.  Do you want to come with?”   
Riley thought it over.  “No, I think I’ll be ok.  Just take your cell phone.  And if it’s really busy or something, call me, ok?”

“Sure thing, sweetheart.”   
Sean called in the order and left promising to be back in 30 minutes at the most.  Riley wandered around the quiet house for a few minutes.  Then she decided to set the table outside so they could eat by the pool.  She put out plates and napkins, got herself a beer, and tried to not panic about Sean being gone.

 

Sean drove down to Subway and picked up the order.  On the way back, he passed a flower shop.  He’d only been gone about 10 minutes, so he popped in to get something pretty for Riley.  As he walked in, a young man welcomed him.  “Good afternoon, sir!  Can I help you find anything today?”   
“Do you have any sunflowers?”   
“I’m afraid not.  They’re out of season.  I could order some and have them here by tomorrow.”   
“Nah, I wanted to bring her something tonight.  What about gerbera daisies?  She likes those….” he trailed off as he saw and arrangement in the refrigerator.  “What in the world are those?” he asked walking over.

The boy smiled.  “Those are something aren’t they?”

They were roses, but not just any roses.  The petals themselves were multicolored.  The boy continued on, “They use a special process to dye them.  We call them Kaleidoscope Rainbow Roses.”  The boy opened the refrigerator door and Sean followed him in to get a closer look.  He smiled.  They weren’t sunflowers, but Riley would love them, he was sure of it.  Turning to the boy, he said, “Can I get a half dozen of those wrapped up pretty?  My girlfriend will love them.”  That was the moment Sean realized he loved saying, “my girlfriend”.

“Of course, sir.  This will only take me a few minutes.”

Five minutes and $50 later, Sean was heading back home.  He got to the house, calling out, “Ri, I’m back.”   
She came in from outside.  Sean was smiling at her, holding a Subway bag in one hand, the other behind his back.  She started to speak, “I thought we could eat outside since it’s so nice out.  What’s behind your back?”   
Sean pulled out the little bouquet.  Riley’s eyes got big and her mouth dropped open.  Looking at Sean she asked, “Are...are those for me?”   
“They are.  They didn’t have any sunflowers.  But I saw these and thought you might like them.”   
Riley just kept looking at the bouquet in Sean’s hand.  Finally she managed to say, “How?”

Laughing, Sean replied, “The kid at the flower shop said they use some special dye process.  He said they’re called Kaleidoscope Rainbow Roses.  “ He held the bouquet out to her and she finally took them.     
“Wow.  Do you have a vase?”

 

Sean dug an old vase out of a cabinet and filled it with water.  Riley had the biggest smile on her face as she placed the roses along with the little bits of babies breath and greenery in the vase.  She leaned forward and inhaled deeply.  “They still smell like roses!”  The she turned and threw her arms around Sean’s waist.  “Those are the most beautiful flowers I’ve ever seen!  Thank you so much!  And you gave them to me just because?”   
“Yep.  Just because I thought you should have flowers.”

“Oh Sean!”

 

She put the vase on the coffee table when they went outside to eat, and kept turning to look at them.  Sean smiled, and Riley asked, “What are you smiling at?”   
“You, like always.”   
“Why?”   
“Because you’re so different from other girls.  It takes so little to make you happy.  Some pretty flowers.  A trip to Disneyland.  A first class flight.”   
“Those aren’t little things, Sean.  They are expensive things.  I’m pretty sure those flowers weren’t cheap.”   
“But all these things I’ve given you, you’ve never asked for.  And you’re so excited and grateful.  I bet that if I brought you flowers every single day, that every time you’d be excited.”

“I want to ask you for something now…”   
“What?”   
“Kisses.”

“Little lady, you can ask for those all you want and you will get them every single time.”

 

They wrapped up what was left of their sandwiches and put them in the fridge, and went inside to relax and watch TV for a while before bed.  Riley stretched out on the couch and promptly fell asleep.  Sean sat in his recliner and, as always, watched her sleep for a bit.  If she knew how much he watched her, she’d probably be creeped out.  He turned back to the TV, and soon his eyes got heavy.  He only meant to close them for a moment, but ended up dozing off as well.

 

Sean woke up to the sounds of whimpering.  He snapped awake and turned to Riley.  She was having a nightmare.  He said softly, “Ri, it’s okay.  I’m here.”  It had worked long ago, but it wasn’t working now.  He got out of his chair, and gently shook her little bare foot.  “Ri, come on, wake up.”  She was still lost to the demons in dreamland.  She started to shake and curled herself up tightly.  Sean could only imagine what was happening in her dream.  Speaking louder, he put his hand on her shoulder, “Riley.  Come on baby.  Wake up.”  Her eyes shot open.  Moving faster than he’d ever seen, she jumped up and was across the room before he could even think.  He looked at her, and realized her eyes were open, but she didn’t seem to be awake.  She was crouched in the corner with her hands in front of her.  He took a step toward her and she cowered.  Not knowing what else to do, he clapped his hands loudly, and almost shouted, “Riley Maxwell, you wake up right now!”

 

He watched as Riley dropped her hands, blinked, and looked around confused.  She said in a small voice, “Why am I in the corner?”  Sean heaved a sigh of relief and asked, “Were you having a nightmare?”     
Riley nodded.   
“Was it about….that?”   
“Yeah.”   
“You wouldn’t wake up.  You must have been sleeping super deep.  I tried to wake you up and you ran over to the corner,” he told her as he crouched down in front of her.  “Are you ok now?”   
“I think so.  I’m sorry Sean.”  Riley looked like she was going to cry.

Sean helped her up and put his arms around her.  “None of that now.  You couldn’t help it.  How about we go upstairs and go to bed.  Ok?”   
Riley smiled and nodded.

 

She waited while Sean did his routine of making sure all the doors and windows were locked and they walked upstairs together.  As they climbed into bed, Sean told her, “The park opens at 9, I’m assuming you want to get there pretty close to that?”   
Riley smiled.  “Damn right!  I don’t want to miss a minute.”   
“Okay, well we should leave here about 8:30.  That will get us there about 10 minutes after opening.  Hopefully by then any bottleneck at the gates will be thinned out.  What time do you want to get up?  I thought we could swing by Starbucks and get muffins and coffee on the way instead of trying to wrangle up breakfast here.”   
“Ooh, that’s a good idea.  Wake me up at about 7.  Plenty of time to get a shower and everything without rushing.”   
  


  
Sean set his alarm on his phone and turned off the light, pulling Riley into his arms.

“Goodnight, Riley.”   
“Goodnight, Seanie.” 


	32. Chapter 32

Sean’s alarm went off at 7, and he gently stroked Riley’s shoulder.  “Time to wake up, Sleeping Beauty.”   
Riley grumbled, “Five more minutes.”   
“But it’s Disneyland day.”

Riley sat up when he said that.  She turned to him and smiled then bounded out of bed and ran her cute naked body straight to the bathroom.  He heard the shower start and chuckled to himself.  She was going to be ready WAY before 8:30.  Maybe he should go pick up Starbucks while she was in the shower.  He poked his head in the door.  “Hey Ri?”   
“Yeah?”   
“I’m gonna go ahead to Starbucks now so we won’t be starving.  What do you want?”   
“Um...a large vanilla latte with nonfat milk and a blueberry muffin, is that ok?” she said as she poked her head out of the shower.

“Of course it’s ok, sweetie.  You can have anything you want.”   
“That’s what I want.”

 

Sean left to go pick up Starbucks and when he got back, Riley was in the bathroom in her underwear blow drying her hair.  Sean leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.  “Good morning beautiful.  Breakfast is in the kitchen.  I put your coffee in the microwave so it wouldn’t get cold.”   
She gave him a smile.  “Thank you, baby.”

As he got in the shower, he thought about the night before.  It really did take so little to make her happy.  And he wanted to make her happy, every minute of every day.  Well, he had a whole week to do it.

Riley fixed her hair, got dressed and went downstairs.  She was sitting at the little breakfast bar eating her muffin and drinking her coffee when Sean walked in.  They looked at each other for a moment before she told him, “Go back upstairs and change.”   
“How come I have to change?”   
“Because I have limited clothes.”   
They had dressed alike.  Both in denim shorts, black tank tops, mini-crew socks, and black Converse low tops.  They looked like a ridiculous matched set.  Riley walked upstairs with him.  “If you just change your shirt, we won’t look so lame,” she said, digging into his dresser drawer and pulling out a blue tank top with the HBJJ logo on it.  “Here,” she said, handing him the shirt.  “Wear this and you can advertise at the same time.”   
“Well ok, but I figured I would wear my HBJJ baseball cap to the park.”   
“How can you when you’ll be wearing mouse ears?”   
Damn.  She was really going to do it.  She smiled evilly and said, “You can either wear mouse ears or on of those dumb ass hats with a propeller on top.”   
“Mouse ears it is, baby girl.”

 

They sat in the kitchen and ate breakfast.  Sean complemented Riley on her hair, she had pulled it back into a french braid.  She knew she wouldn’t want to wear it down if it was hot, and she couldn’t wear her ponytail because of the hat.  She complained that all of his clocks seemed to run so slow, was 8:30 ever going to get here?

 

Sean couldn’t help but laugh.  She was like a kid about Disneyland, and he had to admit, her excitement was infecting him, too.  He hadn’t been in a while, and he knew they were going to have a great time.  Riley shoved a few things in her pockets: lip balm, ID, credit card, and a little bit of money, although Sean kept insisting everything was on him.  At 8:30 on the dot, Riley was waiting by the door for Sean as he gathered up his car keys and wallet, and he chuckled at her fidgety impatience.

 

Finally they were on their way, and Riley talked about all the fun they would have and all the rides they would go on.  When they were five miles away, Riley saw a sign on the side of the highway announcing “Five Miles to Disneyland”, and she gave off the most adorable squeal.  Sean sped up just a bit, still under the speed limit to get her there quicker.  Within minutes, they were driving into the parking lot, and Riley was bouncing in her seat like a kid, with the biggest smile Sean had ever seen.  She turned to him and said, “I can’t believe it! We’re actually here!”

 

They got out of the car, and Sean had been right about the line not being bottlenecked anymore.  He paid for their entry and they went into the gates.  He looked at Riley.  She was just standing there with a look of wonder on her face.  He took her hand and asked, “You ok, Ri?”   
She turned and flung her arms around him, saying, “Thank you, thank you, thank you for bringing me here!”  Then, to his horror, she turned to a park employee and asked, “Where’s the closest place to get mouse ear hats?”   
The worker told her, “On Main Street next to ‘Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln’. Just go to the right under the train tracks.”

Riley took Sean’s hand and dragged him off to the little shop.  Walking in, Riley was so damn excited.  He would proudly wear that stupid hat just to make her happy.  She grabbed girl’s hat, with a pink bow and a boy’s hat with no bow and took them to the counter.  The girl asked, “Would you like your names embroidered on the back?”   
Riley immediately answered, “Yes, please!”   
Sean  just chuckled and paid for the hats like he’d promised so long ago, as the girl handed them off to another employee.  Sean could hear Riley telling the girl how to spell each of their names as she embroidered the hats.  The girl handed Sean the credit card slip to sign and remarked, “It’s nice to see adults get just as excited as the kids.”  Sean agreed with her.  His sweet little Riley, bouncing in her sneakers in front of the embroidery machine as she waited for the girl to finish.  The girl handed her the finished hats, and Riley exclaimed, “Oh, thank you so much!”  Running over to Sean, she plopped his on his head, and looked at him critically.  “Wow, Sean.  You actually look good in it.”  He looked in a mirror on the counter.  He didn’t think he looked “good”, but he didn’t really look “bad”, or “stupid”.  Riley, on the other hand, looked completely adorable.  Disney suited her, that was for sure.  They walked out of the little shop hand in hand, then suddenly Riley said, “Oh wow!” and took off like a shot.  Just then, a large group walked in front of him, making him lose sight of her for a minute.  Slightly panicked, he called out, “Riley?”  She came sauntering toward him with a giant pink cotton candy.  He rolled his eyes.  “Baby, you shouldn’t take off like that.  And I would have bought that for you.”   
“I know.  That’s why I bought it for myself.  You bought the hats.  Want a bite?” she asked, holding it out to him.  Man she was fucking adorable.  He took a big bite, and she said, “We should send Norman a picture!”

They turned so their back was to Main Street, and took a selfie in their hats.  He sent it to Norman, saying, “I’m having a terrible time, can you tell?”  Then he turned to Riley and said, “Let’s take one for Instagram.”  When she balked, he told her, “You could cover the bottom of your face with the cotton candy, and you have sunglasses on, too.”  She thought for a minute then agreed.  They took a second pic, with her face partially covered.  He posted it to Instagram with the caption, “Two rats loose in the House of Mouse!”  Within seconds a notification pinged.  It was Norman, commenting on the Instagram post, “Call an exterminator!”  Then he sent a private message to Sean, saying, “You guys are disgustingly cute.  Tell Riley hi from me and Lisa.  Now Lisa is talking about DLand.”

 

Sean was loving how excited Riley was about everything.  They went on the teacup ride, taking off their hats so they wouldn’t fly off, spinning so fast, the world was a blur, then walking off the ride stumbling and swaying like a couple of drunks and laughing their asses off.  They went on the Haunted Mansion and Riley spent most of the last part of the ride in the little car with her face buried in Sean’s chest.  They went on the Pirates of the Caribbean, and Sean watched as Riley was in rapt attention of all the animatronics….she looked like the kids who were in the boat with them.  When they got off that ride, Sean asked, “Where do you want to go next?”   
“Hm....how about - POOH!”  Riley took off running across the little street.  She kept saying, “Pooh!  Pooh!” as she charged after someone in a Winnie the Pooh costume.  Luckily, Winnie must have been a linebacker because not only turned and caught her, but swung her around in his arms like she was an old friend.  And Sean got it all on video.  He’d never seen an adult act like this, but this was Riley.  She was hugging Pooh and telling him, “You were always my favorite.”  Winnie covered his eyes bashfully when she said that.  Then motioned to his nose.  His handler said, “He wants to know if you’d give him a kiss on the nose.”  Riley’s smile was amazing as she said, “Oh yes, I’d love to!”  She kissed Pooh on the tip of his nose as he got bashful again.  Sean took another pic and sent it to Norman, saying, “This bear is trying to steal my woman!”  Riley thanked Pooh and walked back over to Sean.  “What was that all about?” he asked her.   
“When I was little, before I could read by myself, my mom used to read to me every night.  She would read me Winnie the Pooh books.  We had ‘The House on Pooh Corner’ and ‘Now We Are Six’.  That’s how I learned to read before I was even in school.”  Just when he thought she couldn’t get any more adorable.  His phone pinged and it was from Norman.  “Serves you right.  Pooh’s got the honey connection.  You’re just a random guy.”  Riley laughed when he showed her.

They were walking hand in hand when a girl approached them and said, “Aren’t you Sean Patrick Flanery?”   
“Yes, I am.”   
“Oh you’re my favorite actor!  I didn’t mean to interrupt, but could I please take a picture with you?”   
“Of course.”   
Riley spoke up.  “Here, give it to me and I can take the picture.”   
The girl smiled and asked, “You don’t mind?”   
“Not at all.”  Riley took the cell phone from the girl.  “Okay, smile!  One, two, three.”  There was click, and then Riley said, “Let’s do one more for good luck,” and repeated the process.  She handed the cell phone back to the girl, saying, “They turned out really cute!  You’re very photogenic!”  The girl blushed and said, “Oh thank you!”  Sean noticed the girl's eyes flick to the scars on Riley’s legs briefly, before she thanked them again and left.  Sean muttered, “She looked at your scars.”   
“I know.”   
“You aren’t bothered by it?”   
“Well, not really.  They’re hard for people to miss.  I mean, she didn’t stare or anything.  She just happened to look at them.  I don’t fault people for that, and you shouldn’t either.  If I was wearing fluorescent green shoes, she would have looked at those.  It’s just human nature.  Don’t be angry at people for looking, ok?  Besides….maybe they’re just checking out my hot legs,” she smiled.  He leaned down and gave her a sweet kiss.  “I guess you're right.  I still have this mentality of keeping you safe and protected.”   
“And you do.  Don’t fault people for being people.  Okay?”

This girl was a damn angel. 

 

Lunch time came and Riley wanted a corn dog….she was being such a kid.  So they got their corn dogs and sodas, and sat on a bench people watching and eating.  Finally, Sean spoke.  “You look happy, babygirl.”   
“Because I am.”

“Disneyland makes you happy?”   
“No.  You make me happy.”   
Sean’s heart melted.

 

They walked over to the Tower of Terror ride hand in hand, looked up, and watched in horror as the doors opened and you could see the “elevator” drop and the riders screaming.  Cameras were going off as people tried to get pics of the elevator their friends were in.  Riley said, “We are NOT riding that!”

Sean agreed, “Oh HELL no.”

Riley was looking around and Sean asked, “What’s the matter?”   
“I have to go to the bathroom.”   
Sean pointed out the ladies room, telling her, “I’ll wait right here.”   


When Riley came back, there were a few girls taking selfies with Sean, more fans.  When she walked up, he told them, “Sorry ladies, I’ve got to get back to vacationing!”

“Who’s she?” one girl asked snottily.

Sean smiled and said, “This is my girlfriend,” and put his arm around Riley.   
Snotty girl looked Riley up and down and said, “You look like you got thrown in a wood chipper,” pointing at the scars on her legs.   
“And yet he still prefers my company.  How about that?” Riley said.

Sean was pissed at the girl for pointing out Riley’s scars.  He said, “Sorry ladies, no more pictures.”   
Snotty girl said, “But you didn’t take one with me!”   
Sean looked at her and said angrily, “And I won’t,” took Riley’s hand and walked away.

 

Sean was furious.  How dare that bitch say something like that!  Who the hell did she think she was?  “Sean…”   
“What?” he barked.   
“Could you slow down?  I can’t keep up.”

Sean came to his senses and realized he was dragging Riley through Disneyland at top speed.  She was trotting along just to keep up.  He stopped and turned to her.  “Shit baby.  I’m sorry.  Sorry for dragging you like that and sorry that that one girl was such a horrible cunt.”   
“Sean, it doesn’t bother me.  I knew sooner or later, somebody somewhere would say something.  We talked about it in therapy.  I see people point sometimes and I hear them whisper.  I just ignore it.  It’s not who I am.  They’re so busy seeing my scars that they don’t see ME.  And that’s their problem, not mine.”

Sean put his arms around her.  “Damn baby.  You are something else, you know that?”

  
They were about to start walking again, when Sean’s phone rang.  He pulled it out telling Riley, “It’s Norman.”  Answering it, he said, “Hey brother, what’s up?”   
“You need to get on Instagram right now.  Riley’s been outed.”


	33. Chapter 33

Sean froze.  “What did you just say?”   
Norman ran a hand through his shaggy hair.  Lisa was sitting next to him with her phone opened to Instagram.  “Lisa was scrolling through her Instagram.  Riley’s been outed.  Some girl posted pics of you guys in Disneyland.  She said some shitty things about Ri.  Are you guys still at the park?”

“Yeah,” Sean grabbed Riley’s hand and pulled her over to sit down on a bench.  She had a confused look on her face.  “How long ago was it posted?” he asked Norman.  He could hear him talking to Lisa, then he answered, “Two minutes ago.”

It had to be the bitch they had just run into.  “Let me have your phone, babe,” he said to Riley, and she unlocked it and handed it over.  “What account?” he asked Norman.  When he found it, he wanted to punch someone.  There was a picture of the two of them looking up at the Tower of Terror ride, his arm around Riley.  And there was pic of them walking away only minutes ago, names clearly visible on the backs of their hats.  He showed Riley the phone, then told Norman, “Thanks for letting me know.  We’ll figure out what to do.”

Riley looked at the photos.  They didn’t bother her.  But some of the mean things the girl said did.  The first pic of them both looking up at Tower of Terror, showed Riley and her scars were plainly visible.  She’d seen people pointing a few times and heard the whispers at the park already.  But this girl was just nuts.  Caption on the first picture was, “Ran into Sean Patrick Flanery today.  Check out the ugly whore he’s keeping company with!  Fat and scarred up like she went through a fucking wood chipper.”  Yep, it was that same girl.  The second pic was of them walking away from her only minutes ago, hand in hand.  Caption said, “According to the back of her hat, her name is Riley.  Fucking disgusting.  Looks like she fell out of the fucked up tree and hit every damn branch on the way down.  What does he want with that piece of garbage?”  Sean took the phone out of her hand.  “Baby, I’m sorry.  I’m so sorry.  I didn’t think anything like this would happen.  I promised I’d keep you safe…” he put his head in his hands.

“Sean,” Riley said softly.  “It’s ok.”

Sean raised his head and looked at her, and his phone rang.  It was Norman again.  He sounded happier and he said, “Get back on that girl's Instagram.  You won’t believe it.”

Sean still had Riley’s phone and refreshed the Instagram page.  A smile crossed his face as he showed Riley the phone.  People were defending Sean and Riley on this girl’s page.  One girl posted, “I took a couple of pics with him earlier today, and his girlfriend offered to take them, and took two just to be sure.  She was super nice and pretty, and NOT fat!  What the hell is wrong with you?”  Riley laughed and said, “That must have been the girl we met this morning!”  More people were saying  stuff like, “She may be scarred but at least she’s not a bitch!”  Sean and Riley couldn’t believe it.  Several people stated that they were reporting her account for bullying and encouraged others to do the same.

Sean said, “I can’t believe this.  Decent people still exist.  But fuck….you got outed.”   
Riley spoke again.  “Sean, it’s ok.”   
“What’s ok?”   
“That people know who I am.  You said it yourself that you were surprised no one sold me out in Senoia, and I was too.  Maybe it’s just time to stop hiding.  For fuck’s sake, I’m writing a book, I won’t be able to hide if it’s published.  I’m proud to be your girlfriend.  I never should have tried to hide that.  Are you proud to be with me, too?”   
“Of course I am, baby!  You know that!”   
“Then let's take a picture.  Introduce me to the world.”   
“You sure?”   
Riley took a deep breath.  “Yeah.  It’s time.”   
  
Sean took a selfie of them together, and posted it to Instagram, captioning it, “My Georgia peach, my California cutie, my girlfriend, Riley.  Greetings from Disneyland!”  He immediately started getting likes and comments.  Some were rude, of course, but the majority were supportive.  “I bet that’s the girl with better legs than Betty Grable!”  “I saw them at DLand earlier, they’re so cute together!”  “Look at how happy they are!”  And a private message from Norman: “Good call you two.  We love you guys.  N & L”

 

Sean looked at Riley.  “How do you feel, babydoll?”   
“Like we should ride Space Mountain.”

Getting up off the bench, Sean pulled Riley to her feet and right into his arms and kissed her.  “You are one amazing lady, you know that?”  Riley just blushed.  He threw his arm over her shoulders and they started to walk.

 

They stayed at the park until closing, eating way too much crap in the process.  They watched the fireworks show and Sean turned to look at her.  Her face was lit up from the lights in the sky, a big smile on her face.  Suddenly a thought came to Sean unbidden…   _ ‘I love her.’ _

He blinked a few times and looked up at the fireworks.  Did he really love her? Was he just having strong feelings because she was the first woman he’d been with seriously since Lauren?  Of course she was the first, he’d compared everyone who came along to Riley and they’d all come up short.  Should he tell her?  What if she didn’t feel the same way?  What if she laughed at him?  But deep down he knew that she felt something for him as well.  He could see it every time he looked in those eyes of hers.  He knew that his life was better with her in it.  And he tried not to think about how she would eventually have to go back to Georgia.

The fireworks were over and Riley was telling him, “I’ve smiled so much today that my cheeks hurt!”

“Aw.  I’d say sorry, but I’m not sorry you had fun.”   
She smiled up at him.  “Thank you.  Not just for Disneyland.  For everything…” she fingered her little pendant around her neck.  “They may be little things to you but they mean a lot to me.”

That made Sean choke up.  It’s like he’d said: it took so little to make her happy.  

They walked out of the park hand in hand.  At the car, Sean opened the door for her and kissed her long and hard before letting her get in.  “I’ve wanted to do that all day, but it didn’t seem quite appropriate in the park with kids around.”     
“Mmm, yeah.  They’d have to ask mommy and daddy why that girl got a wet spot on her shorts and why that man’s shorts look funny in the crotch.”

 

They got in the car and started to follow the line of cars leaving.  On a weekend, it could take upwards of 2 hours, but this time it only took 20 minutes.  Sean had an idea.  “Baby, are you super tired?  I want to take you somewhere and show you something.  If you’re too sleepy, we can do it another time.”   
“No, I’m good.  Where are you going to take me?”   
“You’ll see.”

 

They drove through the city, and started up a twisty road.  Riley caught sight of a street sign and read out loud, “Mulholland Drive.”  And then sang softly, “I wanna glide down over Mulholland,  I wanna write her name in the sky...”  She really was all kinds of adorable to him.  Finally he got to the scenic overlook, he wanted her to see the city all lit up pretty.  Make her a little sweeter on L.A.  “Here we are,” he said, pulling into a parking space.  Riley was looking out the windshield and softly said, “Wow.”

“Isn’t that pretty?”   
“Yeah.”

Sean opened his door, and Riley said, “We’re getting out?”   
“Sure.  There’s guardrail, it’s safe.”

As they got out, Sean grabbed a hoodie from the backseat.  It sometimes got chilly up there, and he didn’t want Riley to be cold.  They walked over to the guardrail and looked out.  Riley said, “It’s so peaceful up here.”   
“I like to come up here sometimes to think.  Except on weekends.”   
“Why not weekends?”   
“Well it’s a very popular ‘parking’ spot for horny teenagers.  Prom night up here is probably a vehicular version of Sodom and Gomorrah,” Sean chuckled.

“Did you bring me up here to…’park’?”   
“No, I can play kissy face with you anytime I want.”   
“Have you brought other girls up here?”   
He looked down at her adorable little face.  “You are the first girl I’ve ever brought up here.  Never even brought up my wife.”

They were quiet, then Riley asked, “Why am I so special?”

Sean leaned against the guardrail.  “I don’t know baby, but you are.  You mean the world to me.  There’s just something about you.”

Riley shivered, so helped her put the hoodie on.  The sleeves covered her hands, and she brought them up to her face and inhaled.  Smiling, she said, “Yep, smells like you.”  They stood looking out at the view for a few minutes, and Riley remarked that she was surprised that you could see any stars in the sky.    
"You don't see stars here like you do in the country, like in Senoia. You know, when I was a teenager, I was a hopeless romantic. I believed that there was somebody out there for everybody. And even though I lived in the suburbs, I could see some stars from my bedroom window. And when I got really lonely, when it was almost unbearable, I would look up at the stars. I would remind myself that there was only one sky, and I would think that maybe, somewhere out there, my 'Mr. Right' was looking at the stars too. Maybe he was wondering about me in the most abstract sense: who I was, what I looked like, was I thinking of him, too?”  She had been smiling, but her smile faded as she continued.  “But then I grew up. I realized that fairy tales are just stories in books. And that maybe some people will always be alone."   
Sean looked at her and simply said, “You aren’t alone.”   
  
Riley smiled and took Sean’s hand and lead him back to the car.  They were the only ones at the overlook.  Sean asked if she was ready to leave.  “No, but do you know I’ve never ‘parked’ with a guy? I feel cheated.”  She pushed him into the car in the driver’s seat.  Sean caught on to what she was doing and slid the seat back as far as he could, and she straddled him.  “So why don’t you show me what happens on prom night?”

His hands gripped her hips tightly as she dipped her head down to kiss him, and he pushed up against her.  Riley touched her tongue to his lips, but pulled away when he opened his mouth to hers.  “Oh no you don’t,” Sean muttered as he grabbed the back of her head, gently pulling her down to him.  “No teasing tonight, little girl.”   
“No sir.”

His cock jumped when she said sir, and Riley noticed.  “Sean,” she whispered hotly in his ear as she started to grind against him, “does it turn you on when I call you sir?”  She started kissing this one little spot on his neck that he didn’t even know existed, and he whimpered.

“You haven’t answered my question….Mr. Flanery.”     
His cock jumped again and he ran his hands up her shirt and palmed her breasts.   
“You seem to like it when I call you names that put you in charge….Mr. Flanery, Sir….” His cock was throbbing against her and he managed to whisper out, “Only when you say it.  Fuck Riley, the shit you do to me, the way you make me feel….”   
“Is that so?” 

Sean smacked her ass hard and said, “Take off your shorts and panties, little girl.”   
Riley stood in the open driver’s side door and pulled them both down and stepped out of them.  Sean tossed them in the back seat, then undid his pants, pulling out his hard length.  Riley climbed back on his lap, and Sean closed the car door.  Smiling wickedly, she remarked, “I hope the shocks are good,” and slid his unit inside of her.  She started to move, but Sean put his hands on her hips and stopped her.   
“No, just be still for a minute.  I love the way it feels when I’m inside you.  You feel like Heaven.  My sweet little angel,” he said, pulling her close.  He held Riley against him, his face buried in her neck, surrounded by that sweet smell of hers that he would never get enough of, as she ran her fingers through his hair.

Riley started to squeeze him rhythmically with her inner muscles, making him gasp and pull her back to look at her.  He chuckled and said, “Someone’s been working out!”

“I read about it in a magazine.  Didn’t know if it worked though.”   
“Yeah, it works.  But I like it better when you move.”  Using his big hands, he started guiding her hips up and down.

Riley let him guide her.  “That’s it babydoll,” he told her.  “Give you a nice easy ride.  Tomorrow we aren’t getting out of bed.  Tomorrow I’m gonna taste every inch of your body, Riley.  Every goddamn inch.”   
The sound of his voice saying that had her speeding up.  He sucked one of her nipples into his mouth, gently scraping it with his teeth, making her moan.  He reached over to the side of the seat and pulled the lever to recline the seat and did so all the way back slowly, so as not to break Riley’s rhythm.  He reached up and gently tweaked her nipples.  He was glad that the car had such good shocks, it was really bouncing. 

“Come down here on me, Riley.”   
She lowered herself chest to chest with him, and he slowly turned them so Riley was on the bottom, and she wrapped her legs around him.  “Sean, please…”   
“Please what, sweetie.”   
“Please fuck me HARDER!”

He couldn’t deny a request like that!  He started to really pound into her, each thrust punctuated by a small cry of pleasure from her, that steadily got louder.  He put his face close to hers, and demanded, “Open those eyes and look at me girl!”  She did, and again he saw all these emotions inside of her.  “Keep those beautiful eyes on me, I want to you to watch me unload in you.  You ready for it?”   
“Yes!”

“Gonna cum with me?”   
“Yes!”

He thrust a few more times then said, “Cum NOW!”  Struggling to keep her eyes open and focused on Sean, Riley exploded around him.  At the same time, Sean’s back arched as he called out her name.   
“Shit, Riley…” he breathed out as he gently flipped them over so she was on top again.  She lay with her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat slow down.  He ran his hands up under her shirt and they made circles on her skin.

“Mmmm, wish we could stay right here all night,” she mumbled sleepily.

“Me too, but I’m pretty sure CHP will come up here sooner or later.  Put your drawers on and I’ll get us home, precious.”

Riley reached into the back seat for her panties and shorts, and climbed into the passenger seat to put them on, then fastened her seat belt as Sean started the car.  When he got to the bottom of the hill, he turned to ask her what she wanted for breakfast, but she was sound asleep.  When he pulled into the driveway, he reached over and stroked her hair for a few minutes before gently shaking her.  “We’re home, Riley.”  He liked the way that sounded.  

Riley blinked her eyes sleepily and looked around.   She gave Sean an adorable sleepy smile and said, “Best date ever.  I even put out.”

Sean laughed at that.  “Yep, don’t worry, I promise not to tell the guys in school.”

He came around to her side to open the door and walked to the house hand in hand with her.  Poor thing was just dead on her feet.  Once they got inside, he simply picked her up and carried her up the stairs.  “What are you doing?” she asked sleepily.

“Carrying you up to bed.  My little girl needs some rest.”

“I don’t know why I’m so tired.”   
“We did a lot of walking today.”   
He laid her on the bed and pulled her shirt over her head and took off her bra, then gently laid her back.  She was practically asleep again already.  He gently removed her shoes and socks, then her shorts and panties, and covered her with a blanket.  Her little sleepy voice spoke out, “Could you bring my flowers up here?  I want to see them when I wake up…”  Sean went downstairs and brought the vase up, putting it on Riley’s bedside table. He then undressed and got under the covers as well, and Riley cuddled up to him, putting her head and hand on his chest.  He put his hand over hers and fell asleep.


	34. Chapter 34

Sean woke in the morning with Riley still curled up on him, her little hand curled into a fist underneath his.  He just sat and held her for awhile until he started to get hungry.  He slid out from underneath her carefully, but she half woke up anyway.     
“Sean?”

“Sorry baby.  Didn’t mean to wake you.  Gonna go grab us some breakfast from Starbucks.  Vanilla latte, nonfat milk, and a blueberry muffin?”   
“Chocolate chip scone,” she mumbled, eyes closed, side of her face mashed into the pillow.  “I smell flowers.”   
“I brought your flowers up last night like you asked me.  They’re on your nightstand.”   
Riley smiled at him, eyes still closed.  “Mmm….best boyfriend ever…”  He did his best not to laugh as she let out a little snore.  Her snoring was cute, it was small and ladylike, just like her.  Her hair was coming out of her braid from yesterday, bits falling around her face.  He knew she would kill him, but he grabbed his phone and snapped a pic anyway.  This was for his personal collection.

He went to Starbucks and was back quickly.  Entering the house quietly and walking upstairs, he saw Riley exactly the way he’d left her, tiny little snores and all.  He climbed on the bed next to her and softly told her, “I’ve got your breakfast.  Do you want me to put it in the fridge for later?”

She rolled over onto her back, the blanket sliding to her waist, exposing her breasts, nipples hardening as she stretched.  Sean had to bite back a groan when he saw that.  As much as he wanted to attack her, he should let the girl eat her breakfast peacefully.

“I’m up,” she mumbled.  She sat up and covered herself again, to Sean’s disappointment.   He grabbed the bag and handed her her coffee and scone, then took off his clothes, got under the covers with her, and turned on the TV.  He scooted close to her, and put his arm over her shoulders, fingers gently rubbing her soft skin, as he drank his coffee.  She looked at him and asked, “Didn’t you get a muffin or something?”   
“Nah.  Still stuffed from all the crap we ate at Disney.”   
Riley giggled and replied, “SOOOO much crap!  Best date ever!”

Sean grabbed his phone, telling her, “I filmed your interaction with Pooh, by the way,” and showed her the video.  She started laughing and said, “Wow, I really kind of attacked him!”   
“Yeah, the guy in that costume must be an athlete, he caught you and picked you up and everything!  Can I post this?”   
“What? NO!”

“Can I send it to Norman and Lisa?”   
“Well...ok.”

He sent it to them, knowing they would find it adorable.

Riley finished her breakfast and asked, “Did you mean what you said last night about us staying in bed all day?”   
“I did, indeed.  I also said I was going to taste every inch of your body.  I meant that, too.,” he told her as he leaned over and kissed her.  “Mmmm, a vanilla latte and chocolate chip scone tastes so good on your lips.”

“Oh crap, let me go brush my teeth.”   
“Didn’t I just say it tasted good?”   
“Well yeah, but…”   
“Leave it.  You are not getting up right now.”  He started kissing down her body, pushing her breasts together and running his hot tongue over her nipples.  She let out a contented sigh.  “Mmmm, Sean.”

He ran his tongue over them several times, finally sucking them into his mouth one after the other, back and forth, his eyes never leaving her face.  He gently nipped them with his teeth, and she arched her back and gripped the headboard.  He replaced his mouth with his fingers, gently pinching and twisting her nipples, keeping them hard, keeping her hot.  Sliding down, he left a trail of licks and opened mouthed kisses down her belly.  “Every inch, angel, every sweet inch,” he told her, going even lower.

Finally down between her thighs, he whispered, “Sorry I waited so long to do this again, no fucking excuse….”

The very tip of his tongue travelled along her slit and she cried out, “Fuck yes!”

Sean chuckled at that, then told her, “Play with your tits, baby, I need my hands.”

Riley let go of the headboard and took over the pinching and twisting he’d started, and he got even harder watching her, if that was even possible.

Now that his hands were free, he brought them down between her legs.  Using the fingers of one hand to gently open her up, her clit almost immediately popped out, pink and quivering.  He ran his tongue along her now open folds, ending with a flick over her clit.  Riley’s toes curled up on the sheets and she whispered, “Please Sean….”

Keeping her spread open he tilted his head to the side as he began to fuck her with his tongue.  At the same time, he used the index finger of his free hand to start tapping on her clit.  She screamed out, “Oh fuck yes!”  She reached down and grabbed a handful of his hair to keep him there….as if he would stop. 

Keeping the hood of her clit pulled back, he replaced his finger with his mouth, sucking gently.  Riley released a guttural, “Ohhhhhhhhhh……”  Sean slowly slid two fingers inside of her, probing gently until he found the little spongy bump he was looking for.  Bingo.  He began to slowly slide his fingers back and forth across it.  All Riley could think was that it was the most inopportune time to have to use the bathroom.  She tried to sit up, saying, “Sean, stop, I have to pee!”   
He removed his mouth long enough to say, “No you don’t, relax.”   
“No baby, I really do!  You need to let me up!”   
He popped his head up from between her legs.  “You don’t have to pee, I promise.  Lay down and enjoy it.”   
He went back to sucking and worked his fingers steadily faster.  He unlatched his mouth from her, he REALLY wanted to see this.  Replacing his mouth on her clit with fingers steadily swirling and pulsing, he looked at her.  He could tell by her face that she was fighting to keep from cumming.  He told her, “Baby, it’s ok.  Let it go.  I promise you.”  He sped up his fingers on both of her hot spots.

Riley couldn’t hold it anymore.  Her back arched so hard her whole upper body came off the mattress.  Her eyes were clenched shut and every muscle in her body was tensed; he could feel her walls squeezing his fingers almost painfully.  Sean was in awe, and called out,  “That’s it babygirl, LET GO!”

Riley’s body finally gave in, and she squirted all over her thighs, Sean’s fingers, and the bed.  She convulsed a few more times then collapsed sobbing.  Sean was above her in an instant.    
“Riley, baby, calm down.”   
“I PEED THE BED!”   
“Baby,” he couldn’t help chuckling, “you didn’t pee the bed!”   
“I tried to warn you!”   
Sean felt bad, she was really upset.  “Baby,” he scooted her over to a dry spot on the bed.  “You DID NOT pee the bed!  You just squirted, and it was amazing to see.”   
“I...didn’t pee?”   
“No, baby.  It kind of feels like you have to, I know, but you didn’t, I swear.  Honestly,” he yanked the sheets up to them.  “Do you smell pee on the sheets?”   
She sniffed them.  “No.”

“Have you ever cum like that before?”   
“No.”   
Her kissed her gently.  “You just squirted, baby.  It was amazing to watch your body when you did.  So fucking sexy.  Ri, do you think I would ever do something like make you pee the bed?”

Riley thought for a moment, then admitted, “Well….no.  No you wouldn’t.”

“Damn right.  Especially not on MY bed!  But are you ok?  I didn’t mean to upset you.”

Riley put her arms around him and hugged him.  “I’m ok.  But now I really DO have to pee.”

Sean rolled off of her and watched her cute little butt sashay it’s way to the bathroom and she closed the door behind her.

_ ‘Dat ass…’   _ he thought.  It was time to see how she felt about a little discipline.

 

Riley used the toilet and splashed some water on her face to get rid of the tear stains.  When she came out, Sean was sitting against the headboard of the bed, arms crossed.  He told her, “Stop right there.”  Riley stopped.  He stood there, staring her down.  She started to get nervous and fidgety.  She tried to take a step, but he told her, “I didn’t say you could move, princess.”  She opened her mouth to speak, but he held up his hand.   
“Not a word.  Do you remember our Skype conversations, more or less?”   
Riley nodded her head.

“Good.  We talked about something, well, actually we touched on it briefly, but didn’t get too much into it.  Do you remember the night we masturbated for each other?”   
Riley’s cheeks turned pink, and she got a shy little smile, then nodded yes.

“Alright.  I brought up putting you over my knee and spanking you...and you admitted that the idea excited you.  Do you remember that, Riley?”

She didn’t answer, looking away, and he knew he had to tread lightly.  If she was interested, he wanted her to explore that with him, someone she could trust.   
“Riley,” he said softly, “it’s ok to want to try something.  It doesn’t make you a bad person or a weirdo or anything.  You can trust me.  You know that, right?”

She nodded, looking back at him finally.

Sean got up and walked to her.  Taking her face in his hands, he asked her softly, “We can try it, but only if you want.  We don’t have to.  And we can stop whenever you want.  But you need to tell me what you want.  If you want to try it but not today, that’s ok too.  What do you want, precious?”

Riley thought for a moment.  It had crossed her mind, many times….more than she cared to admit.  She timidly asked Sean, “Have you ever done that before?”   
He was quiet.  He had, with girls he’d picked up at cons here and there, before he’d married Lauren.  He admitted to her, “Yeah, but never with someone I was really seriously involved with.”   
Riley was quiet, then said, “How...how do we do this?”

Sean walked back to the bed and sat back against the headboard where he’d been, and patted his lap.  “Come here and lay across my lap, baby.”

Riley walked over and climbed on the bed and laid on Sean’s lap, squirming a bit to find a way she was comfortable.  Sean grabbed a pillow and a clean towel out the basket of laundry he hadn’t had a chance to put away, and told her to raise her hips and put them underneath her.  It gave her hips a soft spot, covered up his cock, and raised up her ass at the same time.  She crossed her arms and laid her head down on them, turned to the side facing Sean.  She’d undone the remains of yesterday’s french braid, and Sean pushed her hair out of the way.

“You ready, Riley?”   
She just nodded, eyes closed.   
“Ok, you let me know if you want harder or softer or need me to stop altogether.  You’ve got nothing to prove.  All right?”

Again she nodded.

 

Sean raised up his hand and brought it down on her backside.  It was barely more than a love tap.  Softly, Riley said, “Harder.”   
He smacked her harder, and she repeated her request.  When he did it again, she said, “Just like that.”  He was surprised she liked it as hard as she did, but if that’s what his angel wanted, that’s exactly what she’d get.

He started smacking her ass, the sounds echoing throughout the otherwise quiet house, alternating her ass cheeks.  He’d have been lying if he’s said seeing her ass cheeks redden from his hand didn’t turn him on.  It was hugely erotic for him.  And judging from how Riley was breathing in short pants, it was for her.  He stopped for a bit, rubbing his hand over her pink ass cheeks, and asked her, “You ok, Riley-girl?”   
She panted out, “Yes….more...please…”

He switched hands and spanked her several more times, and she began squirming.  “You need me to stop?”   
“No...more...harder….”   
Harder?  Holy shit.  He was going to have to buy some padded gloves.  He gave her several more short, sharp smacks.  Looking at her across his lap, he noticed her legs were crossed tightly at the ankle, and she was rubbing her thighs together.  Sean told her, “Open your legs a bit, baby.”  She did as she was told.  He ran his hand up the inside of her thigh, and he could feel her moisture slicking her thighs as he got closer to her pussy.  When he finally touched it, she whimpered.   
“What’s going on here, baby?  Seems like you’re enjoying this,” he told her as he started to rub her clit with one hand, and then started spanking her again with the other.   
Soon, she had her legs open wide, and Sean was spanking her as fast and hard as his fingers were working her box.  Suddenly she raised up on all fours crying out, “Please don’t stop!  DON’T STOP!” as if he would ever do such a thing.

Then her whole body began to shake, and she screamed out, “I’m cumming!  OH FUCK SEAN, YES!!!!” and she began to buck and moan like an animal.  Sean just kept fingering and spanking her, and then he shot his load without her even touching him.  He was glad he’d had the foresight of the towel.  Riley collapsed across his lap, and they both lay panting and spent.  Sean slid out from underneath her, wiping the last of his cum off with the towel before throwing it into the hamper.

Riley was still lying across the bed, head on her arms, catching her breath.   
“You ok, Riley-girl?”  She gave him a thumbs up.

He went into the bathroom, wet a washcloth with cool water, and wrung it out.  Walking back over to Riley, he said, “I’m going to put this on your butt, ok?  It’s a washcloth.  It’ll be a little cold.”  He gently put it on her bright red ass and she jumped.  “I know, baby.  Just leave it for a minute, ok?”  She nodded and he disappeared into the the bathroom, looking through the cabinets until he found what he was looking for.  When he came out, she was turned toward him, watching him with sleepy eyes.  He held up the bottle of aloe vera gel.  “I’m going to rub some of this on you, ok?  It’ll help cool it and heal it.”   
“Okay,” she said sleepily.

He quickly rubbed the gel onto the redness on her abused butt cheeks, then moved her so she was laying on the bed properly, and cuddled up with her.    
“You ok, sweetie?  You’re awfully quiet.”   
“I’m good.  That was intense.  Thank you.”   
“You are more than welcome.”   
“I…..might want to do that again sometime.”   
“That is 100% ok with me.”   
“Can we take a nap?”   
“That’s my plan, princess.”

It didn’t take long for them to fall asleep.


	35. Chapter 35

When Sean woke a while later, the room was darker than it should have been for early afternoon.  Slipping out from under Riley, he walked to the window.  The sky was filling up with dark clouds, the streetlights were coming on, looked like a storm was on the way.  He gently climbed back into bed, and turned on the TV to the Weather Channel.  They were discussing that a freak rainstorm was passing over L.A., and that it would be gone by tonight.  Riley stirred next to him and mumbled, “Rain.”

Sean chuckled, “Yep, it’s about to rain here in the Southlands.”   
“I thought the sun always shined here?”   
“It does.  Except when it rains.”   
Riley opened one eye and used it to give him a dirty look.  She opened her mouth to say something when there was a blinding flash of lightning, and a rumble of thunder so loud that it shook the entire house.  Riley pulled the covers over her head.  Sean would have laughed except she was shaking.

“Ri, sweetie, it’s just a little lightning and thunder.”   
He lifted up the covers, and all he could see were her two eyes, big as saucers looking at him.  

“Do you wanna come back out?”   
She shook her head no, vigorously. 

“Are you really afraid?”   
Vigorous nod yes.

There was another flash of lightning and rumble of thunder, and Sean’s electricity crapped out, along with all the streetlights outside.  “Well, there goes the power,” he said as Riley burrowed further below the covers.  He grabbed his cell and made a quick call to the department of water and power to give them a heads up and hung up.  Poor Riley was still shaking.  It didn’t seem like she was coming out, so he went over to the closet, got out a flashlight, and went under the covers with her.   
“Hi there, pretty girl.”   
“Hi.”

“What’s going on?”   
“I don’t like thunder.  It’s loud.  And I don’t like lightening, either.”

“The thunder I understand, but why don’t you like lightening?”   
“It hit a tree in my backyard once when I was a kid.  I saw it happen.  For a long time, I thought I had done something bad and God was giving me a warning.  Also, did you ever see Poltergeist?  The tree nearly ate that kid when they were counting the seconds between the lightning and thunder.”

“Well, we don’t have to count, but can you hear that the thunder is getting farther away?  That first rumble was pretty damn explosive, but if you listen, it’s going away.”  He pulled her shaky frightened body to him.  “Didn’t you guys get storms in Georgia?”   
“Yeah.  Norman knows I freak out.  He’s a good boss.  He let’s me go hide under the covers if I need to.  And yes, I know it’s sad that a 40 year old woman is hiding under the covers like a damn kid.”

Sean wrapped his arms around her.  “Hey, whatever you need to deal.”

They laid under the covers for a bit, listening to the thunder recede, and Riley was finally okay to peek out from under the covers.  Suddenly the skies opened and the rain came pouring down, spattering against the window forcefully.  Riley climbed out of bed and stood at the window, watching it pour down.   
“Not afraid of the rain?”   
“Nope, that’s just water.”

 

Sean stepped behind her, putting his arms around her.  She leaned back against him and said, “I wish every moment could be like this.”   
“Me too, precious.” 

They stood for a few minutes, then slowly, Riley felt his steadily hardening cock press against her ass. “Really, Sean?”

“Sorry baby.  Jimmy Johnson wants to say hello.  Again.  Like a damn teenager around you.”

 

Riley didn’t say a word.  She leaned forward, putting her hands on the windowsill, spread her legs, and arched her back, sticking that cute red little ass out.  “A teenager, huh?  I sure hope you have better stamina.”   
“Fucking know I do,” he muttered, lining himself up with her entrance.  “You can make fun of me for getting hard all you want, little girl, but you’re always wet and ready for me.”

He kept rubbing the head of his cock against her slit, but didn’t enter.  Riley started squirming, until he gripped her hips tightly and said, “Be still, sweetie.”

Slowly he slid it between her thighs, nestled inside her labia, and moved forward.  When he did that, the forward stroke ended with the head of his cock sliding right over her clit, and Riley gasped.  Sean smiled and told her, “Close your legs baby.”

In essence he was fucking her thighs, but it felt so damn good.  She crossed her legs at the ankle, and he released a groan.  She quickly uncrossed them until he told her, “Don’t you dare,” and she quickly recrossed them.  Her slick moisture made it easy for him to continue the slide back and forth, nailing her clit with every stroke.

The way their bodies were slapping together and the sounds they were making, it seemed as if they were fucking, and they were….except he was balls deep between her smooth thighs instead of in her pussy.  He had one hand on her hip and one on her shoulder, pulling her hips back against him, her dark hair spilling across her back.  He reached up and grabbed a handful of her hair and pulled her back so she was standing against him, but that made it impossible for his cock to reach her clit.     
“Sean, no, I can’t feel it..”   
Sean gritted his teeth.  “You want it?”   
“Yes!”   
“Beg for it, bitch.”   
“Please, sir, please!”   
She even called him sir, he was impressed.  He released her hair and she bent over on the windowsill again, rain hammering the glass.  They were both close.

Sean turned her to the side, never slowing down, flipped the latch on the window and pushed it open.  The cool rain started hitting both of their bodies just as they rode into their orgasms, Sean grabbing Riley around the waist to keep her from falling.  Her thighs were squeezing him so tight, it was painful, but it was a pleasurable pain, one that he knew he’d want to feel again.  Sean was glad his neighbors weren’t close as Riley screamed out, “I’m cumming, I’m cumming!  Oh FUCK!”  Her screaming was replaced by her convulsing, and then he cried out, “Fuck me, babygirl!  Holy fucking shit, YES!” as he spurted out between her thighs again and again.

Sean held onto Riley, as she was still bent over, and reached over with one hand, closing the window again.  He pulled his cock from between her thighs, and she slowly stood up.  She was being awful quiet.

“Ri, you okay?”

She turned to look at him.  He looked at her little face.  She was going through a lot of feelings, and the confusion was written all over her face.  He opened his arms, and she stepped into his warm embrace.   
Trying to make sense, she mumbled, “I just….I don’t…..I’m so….”   
He just held her in his muscled arms, slowly swaying back and forth and stroking her hair, telling her, “I know baby.  It’s ok.  Shhhh….  You don’t have to say anything.”  He didn’t know what to say either.

He led her over to the bed, laid her down and covered her.  He went into the hamper and got the towel he’d already jizzed on once and used it to quickly clean up the mess on the floor.  He climbed into his side of the bed and pulled his sleepy baby close.    
It was already Wednesday afternoon.   
The week was half over.  He knew that wasn’t completely true, after all, she wasn’t flying back until Monday, they still had four more days.

But he knew it wasn’t long enough.  She could stay for a month and he would still mourn when she left.

 

They dozed and woke before dinner, and Sean went out to pick up something to eat while Riley hopped in the shower.  He came back to her standing in the kitchen with her earbuds in.  She had her back to him as she got a couple of plates and set the table.  She looked incredibly adorable and hugely fuckable.  She was wearing one of Sean’s button down shirts that came to mid-thigh and a pair of his sweat socks on her little feet, all scrunched down, and she was singing.

  
_ “All of her lovers all talk of her notes _

_ And the flowers that they never sent _

_ And wasn't she easy? _

_ Isn't she pretty in pink? _

_ The one who insists he was first in the line _

_ Is the last to remember her name...” _ _   
_

__   
She turned, not expecting to see Sean standing there, and let out a surprised shriek.  Sean chuckled as she clutched her chest, trying to calm her heart that was threatening to jump out of her chest.  “Dammit, Sean!  How long have you been standing there?”   
“Since ‘all of her lovers all talked of her notes and the flowers that they never sent’.  I said your name, but I guess you didn’t hear me.  Didn’t mean to scare you, little miss sexy legs,” he said as he came over and kissed her.  “How come you look so much better in my clothes than I do?”   
“Well that is a matter of opinion.  And who knows, maybe you’d look sexy in my clothes too.”   
Sean did a little feminine strut and said, “Ooh, can I try on your bras and panties?  Something lacy and feminine?”   
“Only if you want to be single again!”

 

They sat down to eat the Italian food he had picked up, and he noticed that she’d brought her flowers back down, and that she got a little smile every time she looked at them.  He told her, “This isn’t as good as yours.”   
“Well why don’t we go grocery shopping tomorrow?  We can get some stuff and I can’t make dinner.”   
“Baby, it’s your vacation-”   
“And I like to cook.  I like taking care of people.  I like taking care of you when I’m here.  Besides, you can only eat so much takeout.”

“True.  I’m really sick of it.  Living with you guys spoiled me.”

  
They made a shopping list before watching some TV and heading up to bed, Riley bringing her flowers up again.  She snuggled tightly against Sean, and was out.  Sean held her, listened to her steady breathing and thought, “I could get used to this.”


	36. Chapter 36

The next morning they went grocery shopping.  They hadn’t gone together since the first time Riley got hurt, when that scumbag left a note on her cart.  Sean pushed the cart as they maneuvered up and down the aisles, with Riley pulling things off the shelves.  He tried not to get angry at the people looking at her scars, but Riley seemed oblivious.  But then a little girl pointed and said, “Mommy, what happened to that lady’s legs?”  Riley froze.  The mother told her daughter, “That’s not very nice,” then turned to Riley and said, “I’m so sorry.”   
Riley just smiled and said, “It’s ok,” then crouched down to the little girl’s level and said, “I was in a very bad accident.”   
Well, that was one way to put it.   
The little girl said, “Is that how you got the red lines on your legs?”   
“Yep.  I’ve got red lines all over now.”   
“Do they hurt?”   
“No.  It hurt when I got them, but not anymore.”  Riley held out her arm and told the little girl, “If you touch them it doesn’t hurt me.”   
The little girl looked up at her mom, who nodded, then she reached out and carefully traced one of the lines.  Still touching her, she said, “I like them.  It’s like a tiger!”

Riley laughed at that.  “I never thought of that, but I guess it kind of does!  I can be a tiger lady!”

She growled at the little girl and both she and her mother laughed.  The child’s curiosity satisfied, she turned to a cereal display.  Her mother told Riley, “I’m so sorry.”   
“It’s ok, really. She’s the only one who has ever asked.  Most people just point and stare and whisper.”   
The mother asked, “Was it a car accident?”   
“No,” Riley said softly so the little girl wouldn’t hear.  “A man did this to me.  I didn’t want to tell your daughter that and give her nightmares.”   
“Oh my goodness!  I’m so sorry!”   
“It’s ok.  He...died.  He can’t hurt anyone else.”

The mother nodded as her daughter came back to the cart with a box of Lucky Charms.  “Mommy, can we get these?”   
Sean pulled out his Connor MacManus accent and said, “They’re always after me Lucky Charms!” making the little girl laugh.

 

The mother and daughter went on their way, and Riley turned to Sean, “Come on, Lucky Charms.  I think we’ve got everything we need.”

He just stood there smiling at her until she said, “What?”   
“You are an amazing woman, you know that?”

Riley turned red, and said, “Sean!”

Taking full advantage of her embarrassment, Sean raised his voice and said, “I have an amazing woman, everyone!”

Some random old guy at the end of the aisle called out, “Mazel tov!”

Riley turned positively purple.  Sean started pushing the cart with one hand and slung his arm over her shoulders.  “I just wanted everyone to know.”

As they loaded the groceries into the car, Riley heard from across the lot, “Bye bye, Tiger Lady!”  Riley turned and saw the little girl getting into her car seat, and called back, “Bye sweetheart!”

Sean leaned across the seat to kiss her after he got in.  “You really are amazing….Tiger Lady.”   
“Why thank you...Lucky Charms.”

 

When they got home, Riley immediately put Sean to work chopping veggies while she put away the groceries.  She had bought a crock pot at the store, and was going to teach him how to use it.  “It’s really great,” she told him.  “You put stuff in it in the morning like chicken and veggies and some other stuff, and when you come home at night, you’ve got chicken stew!”   
“Doesn’t it burn?”   
“Nope, that’s the beauty of it!  After it cooks for the required time that you set it for, it switches to ‘warm’ automatically.  So it doesn’t overcook, but it stays nice and hot, even if you get home at 2 a.m.  I’ll write down a bunch of recipes for you that are super easy.  That way when I leave….”  Riley stopped short, and Sean looked at her.  It was written all over her face.  She didn’t want to go, and he didn’t want her to, either.  Riley started again, “That way, you can always have a hot meal for dinner.”

She went back to putting groceries away as he kept chopping the bell pepper she had given him, but he watched her out of the  corner of his eye.  Riley got done and said, “Excuse me,” and left the room.  Sean heard the bedroom door close.  When she wasn’t out in a few minutes, he set down the knife on the cutting board and went after her.   When he walked into the bedroom, he could hear her in the ensuite bathroom crying.  He was about to call out to her, but stopped himself.  If she had put two closed doors between them, then she needed to be alone.  He crept back out to the kitchen as quietly as he had come in.

 

Riley sat on the bathroom floor with her back against the door, sniffling miserably.  She hoped Sean couldn’t hear her.  She didn’t want to go back to Georgia, but she knew she had to.  It was her home, she couldn’t afford to stay in L.A., she didn’t want to sponge off Sean and stay with him, and she was Norman’s employee.  She couldn’t just leave him hanging.  There were too many reasons to go back Senoia, and not enough to stay in L.A…..yet.  Riley knew she needed to finish the book. Somehow.  The sooner the better.  Ok, at least she knew that.  That was at least sort of a plan.  She stood and splashed some water on her face.  Her eyes were red, but maybe Sean wouldn’t notice.

 

Walking back in the kitchen, Sean was just finishing the last of the veggie chopping.  Looking at her, he could see her eyes were red.  Riley knew she was busted.  Sean asked gently, “You ok?”   
“Yeah, I’m good.”   
“Good.  Now you want to show me how this thing works again?  I’m a little afraid of it.”   
“Well since we’re making beef vegetable stew, we have to brown the hamburger.”   
Sean looked at her blankly.     
“Don’t worry, I’ll help you.”

 

Sean was able to actually brown the meat and not burn down the house.  He seemed to believe there were only two settings for the burners: high and off.  For browning meat, that was more or less ok, although he freaked out and screamed like a girl when she tossed a handful of green onions in.  “Sean, it’s ok.  You don’t have to add stuff to browning meat.  As a matter of fact, don’t ever do that.  You’d probably start a fire.”   
“Hey!” he began to protest, then said, “Ok, that’s probably true.”

They threw everything in the pot and set it for 6 hours, it would be ready in time for dinner.  Sean checked his phone, and saw he had a text from his agent.  He called her, and Riley heard one side of the conversation.   
“Hey, It’s Sean…..which one?.....oh man, I really want that! They want me to audition?.... when?...No, no, no…..can’t we do it after the weekend?....shit.  Can I call you back?...I will….ok, bye.”  He looked at Riley.  “We may have an issue.”   
“What?”   
“There’s a role I want in a movie.  I mean I REALLY want it.  This could be huge for me.”   
“That sounds great!”   
“It is!  But….the audition is tomorrow.”   
“And?”   
“And it’s taking away from our time together.”   
“Sean, are you insane?  Go to the audition!  I mean, how long will you be gone?”   
“Maybe two hours.”   
”Oh my god, Sean!  If you don’t go, I will kick your ass!”   
“Are you sure?  I feel bad leaving you alone.  You won’t even have the car.”   
“I can entertain myself in the house for two hours!”   
“Yeah?” Sean was getting excited, he really wanted this role.   
“Yes.”

Sean called his agent back with the news and they made the arrangements.  “Baby, you are the best!” he told her.  There was no way she was going to let the fact that she was there stop him from trying for a role that he wanted so badly, she wasn’t going to be THAT GIRL.  Oh hell no.  Riley looked over at Sean and he told her, “Thank you for being so understanding.”   
“My pleasure.”   
He slid his hand down her body with a smirk and said, “Can I make it my pleasure, too?”

 

Two hours and a massive fuck session later, they both needed a shower.  Sean suggested they share a hot bath.  That sounded absolutely divine, and while the water was running, Sean said, “I even have bubbles!  How romantic is that?”  
“Very,” Riley said, then burst out laughing when he pulled box of Mr. Bubble out from the cabinet.  
“Girl, don’t be hatin’ on Mr. Bubble!”  
“No, never!”  

 

He poured some flakes into the large tub and told Riley to climb in and said he’d be right back.  She did, and he came back a minute later with two glasses of wine, telling Riley, “Since you think Mr. Bubble isn’t romantic enough.”

Riley held the glasses of wine and slid forward so Sean could slide in behind her, then leaned back against his muscled chest. Holding his glass in one hand, his wrapped his other arm around her.  He really was such a sweet, romantic guy.  “Damn, I meant to bring your flowers in here,” he told her.     
She smiled.  “It’s ok.  It’s the thought that counts.”   
“Thank you for understanding about my audition.”   
“There’s nothing to understand.  You still need to work.  We both do.”   
Sean kissed her ear and whispered, “You are an amazing woman.”  
“That’s the hundredth time today you’ve told me that.”   
“Gonna tattoo it on your ass!  ‘Sean’s Amazing Woman’.”  
“Can we tattoo “Property of Riley’ on your butt?”   
“Yep!”

 

Sean took her empty glass from her and put it on the floor next to his, wrapping both arms around her.  She felt so safe when he put his arms around her, like she was protected from anything bad.  He ran his big hands up and down her arms, then used his feet inside of hers to spread her legs and started gently rubbing his hands up and down her thighs.   
“Sean?”   
“Hmm?”   
“What are you doing?”   
“Mmm...nothing.  Relax angel.”

 

He kept running his hands up and down her smooth legs, then slowly moved them so he was running down her inner thighs, on the way up just brushing against her sex.  She twitched and he whispered in her ear, “Easy there, little mermaid.  Just relax and let me make you feel good.”  He ran his entire hand up against her, spreading his fingers as he went, gently opening her up.  He was looking down her body over her shoulder and whispered, “Such a pretty pussy, baby,” as he gently ran a finger up and down her open twat.  She arched her back against him and moaned, and he gently kissed her neck.  Sliding his finger up higher, he started working it against her clit.  He misjudged how turned on she was though.  He was moving slowly until she practically begged him, “Faster!  I need it faster!”

He immediately sped up, and she was pressing up against his hand.  “Sean….”  She was pleading for something, but he didn’t know what.     
“What do you need, Ri?”   
“I...I need…”   
Whatever it was, she felt that she couldn’t say it.  Sean wracked his brain.  Finally, taking a chance, he said, “Are you gonna cum for me Ri?  Like the dirty little bitch you are?”   
Bingo.  She liked him talking dirty and calling her names, but couldn’t say it.  Maybe it was because of what happened, maybe it was because it was considered ‘wrong’ to like something like that.  Either way, now was not the time to wonder why.

She reached one hand back around the back of his head, lacing her fingers through his hair.  Riley was moaning and panting and pushing back against his hand.  The bubbles were long gone, and the water was splashing up.  He placed two fingers on her clit and started to rapidly pulse them.  She gasped and Sean told her, “Cum for me Riley!  Cum for me RIGHT FUCKING NOW!”

Riley exploded.  Her back ached and then bowed so fast and so hard that she knocked the wind out of Sean, and he didn’t care.  He watched her little toes curl under the water.  He kept pulsing on her clit, wondering how long she could cum for.  “Oh god, oh god, OH GOD!”  Riley was screaming and thrashing in the tub.  Sean made sure he had a good grip around her waist so she didn’t hurt herself.  Finally the thrashing slowed to small jerks, and she said, “Stop...too sensitive.”  Sean immediately pulled his hand away.  Riley hunched over, away from him.

Sean gently put a hand on her back, and she flinched.  “Riley?  Baby, are you ok?”

She nodded but stayed hunched over.  Sean said, “No, you’re not.”  He got out of the tub and wrapped a towel around his waist.  He reached in to help her, and when he touched her, she flinched again.  “Riley, it’s me.  It’s Sean.  You know I’m not going to hurt you.  Baby, please look at me.”   
Turning her face to him, she was crying.     
“Oh god, did I hurt you?  Was I too rough?”   
She shook her head no.   
“Can I get you out of the tub?”   
She nodded yes.   
Sean leaned over and looped her arm around his neck.  Instead of helping her stand, he put his other arm under her legs and lifted her out like she weighed nothing.  He sat her on a towel on the counter, then grabbed a second one to start drying her off.  Her hair had been pinned up so that was fine, but he dried her back, chest, and arms.  Then down to her tummy, legs and feet, even drying between her toes.  He looked up at her periodically but her face was blank.  She started to shiver, and he pulled his bathrobe off of the hook on the back of the door, and helped her into it, then carried her into the living room.  Depositing her on the couch and covering her with a blanket, he told her, “I will be right back, ok?”  Running back to the bathroom, he dried himself, then threw on some pajama pants and a t-shirt.  All the time trying to figure out what was going on.

Walking back into the living room, he sat across from her on the couch.  “What’s going on?  You’re kinda scaring me.  Did  I hurt you?  Was I too rough?”   
“No.”

Ok, at least she was talking again.  “Was it the things I said?”

“No.”   
“Then what, Riley?  Don’t shut me out.  What happened in there?”   
  
She said nonchalantly, “Nothing.”  She couldn’t tell him how strongly she felt for him, it was too soon.  She couldn’t tell him how she’d had to bite her tongue during her orgasm to keep from screaming that she loved him.  She couldn’t tell him that she was scared, so she told him nothing.


	37. Chapter 37

“Riley, come on.  Something was up.”  Sean told her, crossing his arms.

“No.  Just intense.”   
He ran his hand through his hair.  “Babygirl, you were in some kind of distress.”

“Sean,” Riley looked at him.  “Drop it.  I’m fine.  You’re fine.  We’re fine.”  And with that, she got up and went into the kitchen to check on the food in the crock pot.

 

Sean was confused.  But there was nothing he could do.  There was a knock at the door, and there stood a messenger with a delivery.  He signed for it, and Riley came in as he opened the large envelope. “What is it?” she asked.

“It the script for the audition.  They want me to familiarize myself with the scene I’m reading tomorrow.  Just so I’m not flying blind when I go in there.”

The crock pot made a loud click as it switched over to ‘warm’.  They each filled a bowl with the stew and sat at the kitchen table.  Sean took a bite and said. “Oh baby, this is delicious!  Thank you!”   
“Don’t thank me, YOU made it, remember?”   
“Hey, I did!  I can cook something!”

 

The spent the evening lounging on the couch.  Riley in between Sean’s legs like they had been in the tub.  Riley watched some TV, while Sean’s studied the part in the script.  They went to bed early as Sean’s audition was at 10 a.m.

 

Sean woke up the next morning to the smell of bacon.  He  came into the kitchen with his hair sticking up all over and rubbing his eyes.  Riley smiled at him.  “Good morning, sleepy boy.”   
“Mornin’....coffee?”

He was pretty useless until he got some caffeine in his system.  She poured him a cup and he sat at the table watching her, with a sleepy little smile.  Being all domestic had never really appealed to him, but with her, he really liked the idea.    
“How do you like your eggs, Sean?  Up?  Over?  Scrambled?”   
“Over is good.  I smell bacon.  Can I get some while I wait?”   
Riley pulled a plate of bacon out of the oven where she was keeping it warm and put it on the table.

“You nervous about the audition?” she asked as she puttered around.

“A little bit.  I’ve lobbied for a shot at this since I heard about it.  You sure you’ll be ok here alone?”

“I’ll be fine.  Maybe I’ll Skype Norman and see if he’s destroyed the house yet.”

  
  


Finishing breakfast  they took a shower together that was completely innocent for once, and Sean left, kissing her goodbye.  She smiled at him and said, “Have a good day at the office dear!”  After he left she went back in the kitchen and cleaned up from breakfast, checked her email, and called Norman, but it went to voicemail - not unusual, he was probably on set.  Sean had been gone for just over an hour when he returned home, smiling.  “I GOT IT!” he yelled, picking her up and swinging her around.  “And the best part is we’re filming on location, and it’s closer to Georgia!  It’s only a 2 hour flight each way, AND we’ll be in the same time zone….for SIX WEEKS!”

“They already decided?”   
“Yep!  The role was pretty much mine if I showed up!”   
“Oh wow!  So are you filming in Miami or something?” Sean’s happiness was infectious, and Riley was smiling.   
“No, unfortunately.  We’re filming in Toronto for six weeks, and we leave in 5 days.  But we’ll be closer and….”  Sean looked at Riley.  Her smile was gone.  “What’s wrong baby?”   
“I don’t have a passport.”   
“What are you talking about?  Everybody has a passport!”   
“I don’t!” she said defensively.

“Why the hell not?”   
“Because I never went anywhere!  I never went to Mexico or Canada, and I sure as hell never went someplace like Europe!  It was an expense that I didn’t see a need for, so I never got one!”

“Alright, ok, let’s calm down,” Sean said.  “Just go and apply for one.  No biggie.”

Riley looked at him.  “No problem, except the wait for a passport is 6 - 8 weeks.”

Sean looked like he wanted to explode.  Instead he took a deep breath.  “Okay, okay,” he said.  “I have a few friends, let me see if I can call in some favors.”

He was on the phone for the next hour trying to see if he could get Riley’s passport rushed through, but they couldn’t.  She wasn’t an actor, politician, refugee, or married to one.  She was just Sean’s girlfriend.

Riley called Norman and caught him on a break, but there was nothing he could do either.  Norman told her, “Shit, Ri.  I wish I could help.  There’s really no way around it.”

“Yeah, he’s kinda mad at me for not having one, but I never travelled outside of the U.S.”

“Damn,” he said, then she heard people calling him in the background.  “I gotta go, Ri.  I’m really sorry about all of this.”   
“Yeah, me too.”

 

Sean sat on the couch, head in his hands, defeated.     
“Sean?”   
“I can’t believe this.”

“It’ll be okay.”   
“Six fucking weeks, Riley!  Actually longer, I leave in 5 days!  Seven weeks without seeing you?  That’s some bullshit, Ri.”   
“Stop yelling at me!  This isn’t my fault!  I told you I never saw a need for a passport.  It sucks, yes, I get that.  We’ll have to be satisfied with Skype.”   
Sean gave her a look.  “That’s not going to be enough.”   
“It will have to be.  Besides, why can’t you fly to Georgia from Toronto to see me?  It’s only a 2 hour flight.  Once you get your filming schedule, I’m sure we can work it out.  Then we can at least see each other once or twice while you’re filming.”   
Sean thought about that for a moment.  “Ok, that’s true.  You’ve travelled lots of times to see me.  It’s only fair I travel to you.”   
“And you won’t have to worry about jet lag or a time change!  And when you’re done filming, how about coming to Atlanta for a weekend before you go back to L.A.?  I bet Norman wouldn’t mind at all, he misses you.”   
Sean was starting to calm down.  Everything she said was true.  He could figure out when and how he could see her while he was filming, it was closer, and then he could see her when he was done.  He pulled her into his arms.  “Babygirl, I am glad you’re so smart.  Sometimes I just can’t see the forest for the trees.”   
“I know.  You’re a blonde.”

“I’m gonna let that one slide, you little shit.”

 

Sean had asked if she had wanted to go to any other theme parks during her stay, but she was happy with Disneyland.  All Sean could think was that if she lived there, he would take her to Disneyland every week, hell, every day if she wanted, just to see her as happy as she had been.  But for now, she was content to spend her remaining time at the house with him.  Monday was going to be terrible, and it was going to come way too soon.  It was already Friday.  The week was going by far too quickly for his liking.  A thought popped randomly into his head,  _ ‘Tell her you love her.’   _ No.  He couldn’t.  He was too afraid.  

 

That night while they watched a movie, Sean couldn’t concentrate.  He was still thinking about this whole love thing.  He couldn’t believe he was being such a damn coward.  He’d never backed down from anything….except Riley.  He’d taken the easy way out and left her when she needed him.  He would never forgive himself for that.  He knew he was just afraid she didn’t love him.  But the more he thought about it, the more he knew he had to tell her.     
Before he went to Toronto.   
Before she went back to Senoia.

So, the next day he did the best thing he could think of.  He called Norman.

“Hey Sean!” Norman answered his phone.  “Did you and Ri get the passport thing worked out?”   
“Well, there’s no way around it.  But we were gonna talk to you about that.  I’m shooting up in Toronto.  Would it be ok for me to come to Riley a few times?  We’ll have to figure it out with my shooting schedule, but it wouldn’t be hard for me to come to her.  It’s a 2 hour flight, and I’d be in the same time zone.”   
“You know you are always welcome at my house.  You don’t have to ask.  Didn’t I give you a key?”   
“Yep.  And you’ve got one to my place here.  And...I’m thinking of giving one to Riley.”   
“Really?” Norman was intrigued.  “That’s interesting.”   
“I need to ask you a serious question.  Like for real.  No jokes.”   
Norman sat down on the couch next to Lisa.  “Ok, go ahead.”   
“Have you told Lisa you love her?”   
“Yeah.  I tell her I all the time.”  Turning to Lisa, he said, “I love you, Lisa.”   
She smiled and told him, “I love you too, darling.”   
Norm said to Sean, “See?  I just told her and you heard it.  We say it a lot.  Why?  What’s going on?”   
“How did you know it was the right time?  Did you say it first?”   
“I don’t know.  I didn’t plan it.  I just felt it and said it.  And yeah, I said it first.  Are you thinking of telling Ri?”   
Sean was quiet for a moment, then said, “Yeah.  I felt it at Disneyland.  We were watching the fireworks, and I just thought it without really thinking about it.”   
“Tell her.”   
“But when?  How?  Shouldn’t it be special?”

“You’re stalling.  Tell her.  Today.  Now.”   
“But what if she doesn’t say it back?”   
“Lisa didn’t. I totally shocked her.  It took her a few days.”   
“How did you even survive that?”   
Norman sighed and ran a hand through his shaggy hair.  “I didn’t tell her to hear it back.  I told her because I felt it.  And I knew that she had strong feelings for me.  That was enough.”   
“I wonder if Riley has strong feelings for me.”   
“Of course she does, you dumbass!  She flies across the country every two weeks to see you!  She would do it on her own dime if you’d let her!  People don’t do that unless they feel pretty fucking strongly about a person!  She does it without complaint.  And I know you’re miserable when she leaves.  She is too.  She tries to cover it up, but I see it.  If you love her, stop being such a goddamn wimp and tell her.”   
“Maybe.”   
Lisa had been listening to this conversation and she grabbed the phone from Norman.  “Hello dear, it’s Lisa.”   
“Oh hi, Lisa.  How are you?”

“You listen to me right now, Sean Patrick Flanery!”  With her accent, she sounded like some angry British school teacher.  “If you don’t tell her before she comes home, I’ll tell her myself, and then she’ll know what a coward you are!”   
“You can do that to me, Lis!”   
“I can and I bloody hell will!” she reprimanded before handing the phone to Norman.   
Norman said, “Damn.  She told you.”   
“Yeah she did.”   
“Tell her.”   
“I will.  Talk to you soon.”

 

Riley walked in as he was hanging up.  He was temporarily struck dumb as she was in that sexy teeny bikini of hers.  She smiled and said, “I thought we could cook something on the grill and play in the pool since it’s such a nice day.”  Sean smiled at her.  He let her know that Norman was ok with him coming to visit during filming.  “You were right, baby.  It will all work out.  Yes, we can definitely cook out, I just have to run a quick errand and I’ll be back.”  She turned to look at him and he hated the look of momentary panic that settled on her face.  One day she wouldn’t be spooked by him leaving the house.  Even though she was in his house, sometimes she was still afraid that he wouldn’t come back.  She just stammered, “Um….okay.”   
Sean walked over and kissed her forehead.  “I’m coming back, and when I do you’ll see where I went, ok?”   
“Ok.”

 

He needed to get a key made.


	38. Chapter 38

Sean drove down the the Ace Hardware that wasn’t far from his place.  It was a nice little family run store, he’d stopped in for things like lightbulbs and batteries, and the random nut or bolt or whatever. 

As he walked in, the older man sitting on a stool behind the counter stood up.  “Hello there young man.  What can I help you with today?”   
“Good afternoon, sir,” Sean greeted him politely as he’d been taught as a boy.  “I’d like to get a copy of a key made, please.”

“Alrighty.”   
Sean took his house key of his key ring and handed it to the man.  While he made the copy, Sean absent mindedly twirled the little stand of key rings on the counter.  One caught his eye.  It was a red heart that actually said “RILEY” on it.  He couldn’t believe it.  He’d never met anyone with that name, and he’d met a lot of people.  Hoping it was a good omen, he pulled it off the hook and put it on the counter as well.  

When the man turned around and saw the key ring, he smiled and said, “Getting a key for a ‘lady friend’?”

Sean blushed and said, “Yes I am, sir.”

The man attached the key to the key ring, and rang Sean up, telling him, “Good luck with your lady.”   
“Thank you sir.”   
  
He drove back home.  Walking into the house, he peeked out the back and saw Riley floating around on a little pool float, hands lazily swirling through the water.  Yes.  This.  Now.

Walking out onto the patio, he asked, “Ri, can I talk to you for a sec?”   
“Yeah, give me a minute.”

He watched as she paddled over to the ladder and climbed out, walking over to him smiling.  “So what was this mystery errand of yours?”

“It was… come here,” he said. Leading her over to one of the lounge chairs.  “Have a seat.”  He began pacing, much like he had before he gave her the necklace.  He stopped, sat down, and stood up again, Riley watching him.  She knew he was nervous about something.  She also knew he wouldn’t be able to say anything until he was ready.  She put her elbows on her knees and propped her chin up with her hands.

Sean sat down again, managed to say, “I….” then stood up and started pacing again.  He hadn’t really thought this through.  He fingered the key and keychain in his pocket,  Unsure of what to do next, he pulled it out and said, “Here.”  Then chastised himself silently.   _ ‘Real smooth, asshole.’ _

Riley brought up the first thing she noticed.  “A keychain with my name on it!  I’ve never been able to find one of these!”  Then suddenly.  “What’s the key for?”   
“It’s a key to the house.  This house.”   
Riley’s brow wrinkled in confusion.  “I don’t get it.  Why do I need a key?”   
“You don’t. But I want you to have one.”   
Riley looked down at the key in her hand, then back up at him, still obviously confused.   
Sean took a deep breath and said in a rush, “I want you to have a key so you know you’re always welcome here, even if I’m not here, and because I fucking love you.  A lot.”

“Wh-what?”   
“I love you, Riley,” he told her looking at the ground.  She didn’t say anything, and he looked up at her, to see a big smile on her face.  He sat down across from her, and she told him, “Had a feeling that you might.  Gotta admit, though, it’s nice hearing it out loud.”   
“Wait.  How did you know?”   
“Because it’s obvious!  The way you treat me, all the little things that you do….” she held up the key, “...and the big things, too.  You remember how much I love sunflowers.  You know just how I like my hamburger grilled and how I take my coffee.  You know what I like at Starbucks, but you always check before you go because sometimes I change my mind.  You know which side of the bed I like to sleep on.  You hold open doors and pull out chairs for me, and if your Granddaddy were alive I’d kiss him because I know that’s his influence.  You wore mouse ears all over Disneyland, even in pictures, just because I wanted you to.  You stuck up for me when that girl was mean.  You fly me back and forth to see you.  You pick me up and drop me off at the airport when I could just as easily take a cab.  You make me text you once I’m in Norman’s car, just to be sure I’m safe.  You got angry when you thought you might not be able to see me for 7 weeks.  And you just gave me a key to your house.  I know you love me.  And maybe I haven’t done as many nice things as you have, but I hope you know…” she paused and took a shaky breath, “...that I love you too, Sean.  I have for a really long time.”

Now Sean was intrigued.  “How long is a long time?”   
Riley thought for a moment and said, “I started to fall in love with you the first time I was in the hospital.  When you sang to me.  You sang ‘Love Me Tender’ by Elvis.  And I knew for sure when we went to Lauren’s wedding.  You were so protective of me, and I felt so safe with you.  And then that night was amazing…” she trailed off, blushing.   
“Yes it was,” Sean smiled at the memory.  “I’ve always liked you, Riley.  I got a crush on you when I first met you, when I visited Norman and he took me to Bailey’s to meet this ‘really cool bartender chick’.  I walked in and you were behind the counter.  You had this long, dark hair, and those big, dark eyes.  And when you looked at me, you saw Sean, just another customer, not Sean, the actor.  I couldn’t understand why Norman wasn’t chasing you.  And you gave me a hard time from day one, I kinda liked that.  You didn’t take shit from anyone.  You deserve someone better than me,”  he saw the look of panic on her face and quickly assured her, “but I refuse to give you up.”

“I don’t give you a hard time any more.”   
“Nope.  Just a perpetual hard on.”   
“Sean!”   
“How many times do I gotta tell you?  I’m like a damn teenager around you.  My Jimmy Johnson always wants to come out and say hello to the pretty lady.”

Riley gave him a naughty smile that he knew too well and asked, “Is that so?”   
“Yes ma’am.”   
She threw her towel on the ground between his legs and knelt down.  Never taking her eyes off of him, she unbuckled his belt and unbuttoned and unzipped his pants.  He lifted his hips so she could pull them down farther, and she grabbed his hard cock in her hand, slowly pumping it a few times.  Using her other hand, she gently nudged his legs farther apart, then dipped her head  and started sucking on his balls, one at a time.  “Oh fuck, Ri,” he managed to breathe out.  She continued what she was doing, then ran her tongue up and down the seam a few times, causing Sean hips to buck and yell out, “FUCK!”  Riley immediately pulled away, afraid she’d hurt him.  Sean caught his breath and told her, “Sorry, baby.  That felt REALLY good.  Like, AMAZING.”   
“Should I do it again?” she smiled.

“God yes!”

Ducking her head between his legs, she did it over and over.  Sean’s head was thrown back, and he was biting his lip so hard, Riley was afraid he’d draw blood.  She ran it up along the seam once more, continuing up the underside of his cock, up and over the tip, and finally sliding her mouth over him.  She reached down with one hand, cupping his balls, with her fingers right up against his taint.  Riley looked up, to see Sean looking down at her, eyes dark, waiting to see what she would do.  Keeping her eyes locked on his, she slowly bobbed her head, one hand around the base doing that twisting motion he loved so much.  With the hand cupping his balls, she started massaging the seam with her thumb.  Sean eyes went wide, then slammed shut.  He started softly moaning over and over, “Oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck….”  Riley took that as a go ahead and sped up on everything.  Sean managed to gasp out, “Riley...I can’t...it feels too good…” and in his next breath, “Don’t stop….don’t you dare stop….”

 

Riley felt his balls tighten up, and he came like a river down her throat.  Sean was doing something he’d never done, bucking crazily, and screaming her name in a sobbing shout over and over.  “FUCK RILEY!! OH FUCK I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU!!!  Ah god, oh Ri!”  Unable to control himself, he rammed himself down Riley throat a few times, but she never took her mouth off of him.  He managed to look at her, then collapsed back on the chaise lounge.   
“Sean?”

No response.   
“Sean!”

Nothing.

“SEAN!”

Silence.

For a horrifying moment, Riley thought she’d killed him.  She gingerly put a hand on his chest, and could feel his heartbeat, slowly returning to normal, and she could feel it rise and fall with each breath.  Her friend Mary had told her about that trick back in college, claiming you could make a guy pass out.  She’d never tried it, and figured it probably wouldn’t make Sean pass out, just that it would feel pretty good.

She climbed on him, straddling him, and gently slapped his cheek.  She was really scared.  Sean wasn’t a young man anymore.  Yes he was in great shape, but still.  “Sean?  Baby, please wake up.  You’re scaring me.”  Should she call 911?   _ ‘I need an ambulance.  I gave my 50 year old boyfriend a blow job so amazing he passed out.’   _  Oh god, that would be embarrassing.  Luckily, Sean started to come around, and Riley was flooded with relief.  He slowly opened his eyes.

“Hey babygirl.”   
“Hey yourself!”   
“What the hell happened?”   
“What do you remember?”   
“Mmm….an epic fucking blowjob.  Holy shit, did I cum in your mouth and then pass out?”   
“Yep.”   
He sat up.  “Shit angel, I’m sorry!  Talk about bad manners…”   
Riley laughed.  “Well it was kinda my fault.”  She told him the story about her friend from college and that she’d never believed the story….until now.  “For a minute there, I thought I killed you.  Then you wouldn’t wake up and I thought I’d have to call 911.”   
“That was definitely a 911 worthy blow job, baby!  God damn, that was incredible!  Thank you!  If you want to do that again, I wouldn’t mind.  At least now we know what to expect.”   
“Yeah in one breath you said it was too much and in the next you told me not to stop.”

He leaned forward, wrapped his arms around her waist, and kissed her.  “Riley, you are still full of surprises.  Every day with you is amazing.”  He brushed some hair back from her face.  “Thank you for letting me come back into your life.  Thank you for forgiving me.”   
“I never really let you go.  I kept hoping you’d come back or call.  It took you a while, but you did.”   
“Yeah, my head was wedged really far up my ass.  It took a while to get it out.”

“A whole year.”

When she said that, Sean got the saddest look on his face.  He’d wasted so much time.  He could have spent that year loving her if he hadn’t been such a damn coward.  Maybe by now they’d be together.  She’d be here, permanently.

Riley put her hand on his cheek.  “Hey, it’s ok,” she said softly.  “We’re together now.  Everything is ok.  And I’m all yours now.”   
“All mine?”   
“Yep.  Every last little strand of hair.”

He started kissing her and asked, “Every last little eyelash?”   
“Mmhmm.”   
“Every last inch of your skin?” He was running his hands over her body.   
“Yes.”

He started to slide his hand into her bikini bottom, but she stopped him.  “‘All of me’ includes care and feeding.  Put Jimmy Johnson away and fire up the grill, handsome.”

  
And that, she walked into the house to put her new house key and keychain away.


	39. Chapter 39

Sean threw some steaks on the grill and watched from the patio as Riley made a salad to go with it.  He liked the way she puttered around his kitchen….like she belonged there.  But she was leaving on Monday.  He frowned as he flipped the steaks over.  Riley came out with the salad and saw his sour expression.  “Baby, are you ok?”   
He forced the expression away.  “I’m good, angel.  Almost burned one side is all.”   
She didn’t really believe him, but let it go.  “Do you want a beer?”   
“Yeah, that would be great.”

She went in the house for plates and utensils and put them on the patio, then went back in for beers for both of them.  She gave Sean his and hugged him from behind.  He had changed into swim trunks, and she planted a kiss on his bare back.  They stood quietly until Riley put her cold beer bottle right up against his belly.  He yelped, “What the hell?”  And Riley laughed, “It was getting entirely too quiet around here!”  Sean grabbed her beer bottle and put it down and began to chase her.  “Girl, you are gonna get it!”

“Gotta catch me first, grandpa!”

“Oh, now you are REALLY in trouble!”

 

He began chasing her around the pool finally catching her and throwing her in the deep end.   He realized his mistake before she hit the water.   _ ‘Fuck, she can’t swim!’   _ He dove in after her immediately as she pushed off from the bottom of the pool back up to the top.  Once she broke the surface, she was coughing and sputtering.  Sean grabbed her, holding her head above water.  “Baby!  Oh god!  Riley, I’m so sorry!  I forgot!”   
“Sean, it’s ok. I’m ok.”  She was still coughing up a bit of water, and she could see that Sean was absolutely wracked with guilt.  Still holding her, he swam over to the ladder and helped her up, following her.  He put his arm around her and sat her on a chaise, then ran in the house, returning with a towel, which he wrapped around her.   
“Sean, really.  I’m okay.  It’s fine.  You better turn those steaks before they burn.”

He jumped up to do so, then was crouching back in front of her, fretting.   “Sean, stop.”   
“But you’re coughing up water!”

“Yeah, I wasn’t prepared and swallowed a bit, and it tastes like ass.  If you want to help me, give me my beer so I can get rid of the assy taste in my mouth.”

He handed her her beer, and walked over to the grill.  Riley heard him mutter to himself, “Jesus, tell her you love and practically drown her all in the same hour.  I’m doing great.”   
Riley rolled her eyes.  “Dammit Sean!  I’m fine!  I just swallowed a bit of water.  You want to see how fine I am?”  She stood, threw off the towel, and jumped in the deep end on her own, holding her nose.  She pushed off the bottom and broke the surface just as Sean was about to jump in after her.  She treaded water, and said, “See?  Perfectly fine,” then doggy paddled over to the ladder and climbed out.  Sean handed her the towel she’d thrown off with a dumb expression on his face.  “I don’t like being unable to touch the bottom.  I don’t like being dunked and I sure as hell don’t like being thrown in.  But I’m not going to drown.  I can get myself out of the deep end if I’m there, but I don’t like being there.  The water does scare me, but I told you a long time ago that I can tread water and doggy paddle.  And if you ever throw me in again, we’re going to have a problem, capisce?”   
Sean just nodded.  He opened his mouth to speak, and Riley stopped him.  “If you apologize one more time, I will totally punch you in the nose.”

“Um, the steaks are ready.”

“Oh.  Well okay then.” 

 

They ate dinner and finished their beer, then climbed into the hot tub as the sun was setting.  Riley was leaning at the edge on her forearms, eyes closed, face turned towards the rays, and Sean came up behind her.  He put his hand on her back, it reached almost all the way across.  She was so tiny compared to him.  He ran his hand down her back, and put one on each side of her waist, sliding them down over her hips.  Curved in all the right places.  She was so incredibly sexy and she didn’t even know it.  He pulled at the strings on the hips of her bikini bottoms.  Riley turned to look at him over her shoulder, and gave him a little smile.  “Babygirl, you’d turn an angel into a demon with that smile.”

He turned her to face him and kissed her and he pulled the strings of her top.  Both pieces of her suit floated away as she tugged at his swim trunks.  “I don’t think we should allow suits in the hot tub anymore,” she told him.   
“For the two of us, definitely not.  I may just paint my windows black so I can have you walk around naked all the time.  Just watch you walk around all day with these hard little nipples…” he rolled them gently between his fingers until they got hard, then pressed his thumbs against them and rotated in a circle.   
“Oh shit,” Riley gasped.  She arched her back into his hands and closed her eyes.

“Oh no you don’t, little girl.  Open those eyes right now or I’ll tan your ass so bad you won’t be able to sit for a week.”

Riley opened her eyes and looked at him.   
“Does what I’m doing feel good, Ri?”   
“Yes….really good...mmm…”

He wedged his knee between her legs, and she immediately started to grind against it.  She reached up to place her hands over his, but he warned her, “Don’t you dare.  Don’t make me pin your arms down Riley.  Because then I’d have to stop touching you,” he pressed a little harder with his thumbs and sped up the rotation.  “You don’t want that, do you baby?”   
“N-no, sir.”   
“Use those hands to play with your pussy instead girl.  Get yourself off for me.”

Riley slid her hands under the water, and Sean moved his knee away.  It was getting too dark for him to see her hands underwater, but he could see her face perfectly in the dim light.  He watched as her breath hitched, she bit her lip, and he could see her trying her hardest to keep her eyes open and focused on him.

Pressing his forehead to hers, he said softly, “You can close them if you need to, beautiful.”  She did, and he lowered his head to one nipple, replacing his thumb instead with his tongue making her gasp.  He traded nipples back and forth, sucking one while he rotated the other.

“Sean,” Riley’s voice had a frustrated edge.   
“What do you need?”   
“It’s the water.  It’s…I can’t...”   
Of course.  He hadn’t thought about that.  It could be too hot, it could be drying her out, it could even be keeping her from rubbing herself as quickly as she needed.  Without another word, he grabbed her by her hips, lifted her up and out of the water, and sat her on the edge of the hot tub.  Pushing her legs apart, he dove in and started licking her beautiful pussy, getting her nice and lubricated, then grabbed her hand and put it between her legs, telling her, “Finish yourself off.”

Riley slid a hand between her legs and Sean watched as she slid two fingers in and started pumping herself fast and hard.  He started with his thumbs on her nipples again, and she moaned out, “Oh fuck, Sean…”   
“That’s it sweetheart.  Show me how you’ll take care of yourself while I’m gone.”   
Her other hand slid down and starting rubbing her clit.  “I’m close…”

“Cum for me, dirty girl.  Cum for me and show me you love me, tell me you love me.”

As her legs started to tremble, Sean gave her poor overstimulated nipples a firm pinch, sending her over the edge screaming.  “I LOVE YOU SEAN!!! I LOVE YOU!!  I- oh fuck, oh my god….I love you so much!”

He held onto her waist so she wouldn’t lose her balance on the edge of the hot tub, and watched her.  Watched her shake, and scream profanities and love, and felt it in his heart.  He’d made the right choice to tell her.  He DID love her.  Maybe he always had.

Riley slid her fingers from her core, eyes closed still, and felt Sean take her hands and lick her fingers clean.  She forced her eyes open.

“You ok, pretty girl?” Sean asked full of concern.   
Riley managed to shake her head no before the tears started.

“Okay, baby,” Sean said as he pulled her into the hot tub with him, wrapping her legs around his waist and holding her tightly to his body.  “Shhh….it’s okay, Riley, I’ve got you.”  He rocked her back and forth in his arms like a baby.  Riley felt embarrassed and ashamed that she couldn’t stop crying, and managed to sob, “I’m sorry.”   
“No need to be sorry.”   
“I don’t know why I’m crying.”   
“I think maybe today has been a bit overwhelming, yeah?”  He pulled back to look at her.  She nodded and sniffled miserably, and he pulled her close again.  “Yeah.  Today had a lot of stuff in it.  A little overwhelming and a little scary and a little exciting.”

She nodded into Sean’s neck.  He continued, “But I hope that everything was ok?  The key and the I love you was ok, wasn’t it?” He was suddenly worried.  They hadn’t been dating for that long.  What if he’d spooked her?  He pulled back to look at her again.   
She was still sniffling a bit as she told him, “I never would have thought in a million years you’d give me a key to your house.  That’s a really big deal.  Like REALLY big.  And you telling me you’d loved me?  Definitely unexpected.  But yeah, it was MORE than ok, Sean.  Much more.”   
He looked at her pendant, still around her neck, then up at her face.  “You just feel….’right’ to me, Ri.  I can’t explain it any other way.  Whenever I’m with you, it’s just….’right’.  I totally called Norman about how to tell you I loved you.”   
Riley started laughing.  “Is that why you were on the phone with him?”   
“Yeah.  Lisa yelled at me.  I felt like I was in school.  She said if I didn’t tell you she would tell you when you got back, and then you’d know I was a coward.”   
“Awww!  I never would have thought that.  I would have thought you were a big chicken, but not a straight up coward…”

“But I didn’t plan it.  And I didn’t say it because she threatened me.  I said it because I felt it, I knew it, and it was the right time.  I didn’t want you to go back to Senoia before I got the chance to say I love you, Riley Marina Maxwell.”   
“How did you know my middle name?”   
“I peeked at your driver’s license one time.”   
“Jerk,” Riley smiled at him.  “I love you too, Sean Patrick Flanery.”

 

Riley unwrapped her legs and stood in front of him in the water, reaching for his cock.  Sean stopped her, gently saying, “No.”   
“But...you’re hard.  And I got off and you didn’t.”   
“I don’t care.  All I want is to go upstairs, get into bed, and veg out with you until we pass out.  I know we don’t have much time left, but we don’t have to be all sex, all the time.  I hope you know that.”   
“I do.  And that actually sounds good to me, too.  Grabbing their wet bathing suits from the water, they wrapped towels around themselves, quickly cleaned up from dinner, headed upstairs, and cuddled up in bed.  

 

Laying there with Riley in his arms, giggling at a Big Bang Theory rerun, Sean felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of him.  He’d been so afraid for so long for nothing.  Riley hadn’t run away screaming when he admitted he was in love with her.  She’d even said it back.  

  
It was Saturday night.  He needed to make the most of the time they had before she left.


	40. Chapter 40

Sunday morning, Sean woke up with a very soft and warm little Riley up against him.  He opened his eyes.  She was asleep on her side facing him, with her hands tucked up under her chin.  He just lay there watching her sleep.  Her eyes were moving beneath her lids, following whatever was going on in her dream.  Every now and then her lips would move just a bit, as if she were speaking.  Slowly her eyes opened and she gave him a sleepy little smile, “Good morning…”   
“Indeed, pretty girl.”   
“What time is it?”   
Sean looked over at the clock on the side table.  “About 9:30.”   
Riley burrowed down into the blankets.  “Too early.  Come cuddle me.”   
“Give me just one sec.”   
Sean ran downstairs to get Riley’s flowers.  The damn things were still blooming, not one wilted petal after 6 days.  He came back in the room, placing them on her bedside table, and pulled one out.  She had her eyes closed, no doubt drifting back off, but he had other plans.  He pulled one rose out, and climbed back into bed next to her.  Speaking softly, he said, “I brought your flowers up for you.”  She just rolled over on her back and mumbled, “Mmmm…”   
Sean took the rose and ran it’s petals gently down her cheek and along her chin, and she smiled.  He ran it gently over her closed eyelids, down the bridge of her nose, and over her lips, then leaning over and kissing her gently.   
Riley asked, “You gonna violate me with a flower?”   
“Nope.  Gonna violate you with my fingers and my tongue and my cock.  But I’m going to get you started with a flower.  You  just lay there with your eyes closed and relax, pretty girl.”     
Sean pushed the blankets down to her waist, and danced the flower over her collarbones, down the center of her body to her bellybutton, then up to circle around the swell of one breast, then the other.  He circled them lazily around her breasts over and over, the circles getting progressively smaller, and watched her clench the sheets in her fists.  “That feel good, Riley?”   
“So good.”

Sean gently ran the petals over one nipple and then the other, making Riley gasp lightly and arch her back as they hardened.  He did it several times, loving her reaction.  “Damn, Riley.  Your body is so responsive.  I love the way you react.”

He ran the flower down between her breasts and stomach, pushing the blankets completely off of her.  God he loved her body.  Sliding the flower down one leg, he whispered, “Open your legs for me.”  When she did, the rose continued it’s travel, going back up the inside of her leg slowly, but skipping over her lady bits completely.  Instead, he slid the rose down her other leg, and up the inside of it.  

Riley was practically writhing on the bed.  She begged him, “Sean, please…”

The rose traveled over her pubic mound.  Sean’s fingers gently spread her open, then he softly ran the flowers petals across her open pussy.

“Sean!”

Finally, he tossed the flower aside and started licking her like she was a rapidly melting ice cream cone.  Riley grabbed at his hair, moaning, “Oh FUCK YES!”  Sean slid his tongue all along her wet folds, then pushed it inside.  He would never get tired of her taste.  Sucking gently on her clit, he slid his fingers inside, probing gently until he found her G spot.  Riley gasped out, “Sean, no…”   
Smiling against her pussy he said, “Oh yes…”

Poor Riley didn’t know what to do.  She wanted him to stop, but she wanted him to go on, too.  She knew she would squirt, and it embarrassed her for some reason.  She reached down and tried to pull him away.  “Sean….oh god...no don’t...oh fuck…”

Sean was having none of it.  Keeping up his assault with his fingers, he used his thumb on her clit as he sat up and climbed off of her.  He grabbed both of her wrists in one big hand and pinned them above her head.  Riley continued to struggle, but her body was betraying her.   
“Stop it, Riley.  This feels good I can see it all over your face.”   
“No...oh yes...I mean no...”  She strained her wrists against him, even as she pushed her hips harder against his hand.

Sean whispered in her ear softly.  “I don’t know what’s going on in that head of yours, but you need to let it go, little girl.  It’s ok to feel good.  I love you, I won’t do anything you don’t like, but I know you like this.  Let yourself feel good, baby.  It’s ok.”

As he pulled back and looked at her face, he felt her body start to shake as her orgasm started.  “Yes, Riley, YES!”

She managed to choke out, “Gonna cum…”   
Then she was gone.  Back arching, and screaming, literally screaming Sean’s name.  “SEAN!!!  I need you, I love you, don’t stop!”   
“Never stopping babygirl!”  He was two fingers into her, and in the middle of her orgasm, he slipped in a third.   
Her eyes flew open, she opened her legs so wide she was practically doing the splits, and she screamed, “I...need...MORE!”

Sean pushed in a fourth finger, and her tight little pussy clamped down even tighter, as he yelled out, “YES!  Take it all, dirty girl!”  He was shoving practically his entire hand into her furiously when Riley squirted all the way to the edge of the bed in three big gushes.  Her beautiful body arched upward each time, and Sean couldn’t do anything but watch in awe.

She finally collapsed back on the bed, covered in sweat, and shaking from orgasmic aftershocks.  Sean looked between her legs.  He had four fingers inside her, all the way up to the knuckles.  He started to slide them out, and she cried out in pain.  He felt like a complete dick.  He slowly slid his fingers out of her one at a time.  Watching her face, he could see that he was hurting her as he slid the first two out: his pinky and his ring finger.  He slid the last two out together, and watched as her pussy closed back up.  It was bright red, but other than that, it seemed ok.  Checking his fingers, he didn’t see any blood or anything.     
Sean looked at Riley.  She was already asleep.  How could he have done that?  He’d caused her pain.  She had seemed to like it while it was happening, but afterward, she was obviously hurt.  He tried to keep the tears from falling.

Going into the bathroom, he fetched a towel and placed it on the bed on the giant wet spot she’d left, gently lifting her hips and placing it underneath her.  He climbed back in next to her.  Even though she was asleep, he whispered, “Forgive me, baby.  I’m so sorry.”   
His heart soared when he heard her sleepily mumble, “No forgiveness necessary.  Love you, Seanie.”

He pulled her close and let his tears come.

 

Riley slept but Sean couldn’t.  He was wracked with guilt.  He’d hurt her.  He saw that he did.  Looking toward the foot of the bed, he saw Riley’s little toes, with their chipped polish.  Maybe if he painted her toenails before she went home he wouldn’t feel like an abusive bastard.  He slipped out of bed and threw on some clothes, leaving a note on the pillow in case she woke up before he got back, and left.

Riley woke up just minutes after he left.  She reached to his side of the bed, but it was empty.  She opened her eyes and looked over to the bathroom.  The door was open and she could see he wasn’t in there.  She called out, “Sean?”  The house felt empty.  Looking over to his bedside table, she saw his wallet, phone, and keys were gone.  Starting to panic, she called out louder, “SEAN!”  She jumped up and looked out the window.  His car was gone.  She grabbed her cell and called him, but it went straight to voicemail.  She said, “No, no, no….”  She had no way of knowing Sean had left her a note.  In his haste, the note had fallen right off the bed and drifted underneath.

 

Sean stood in the makeup aisle in CVS, stunned.  He never knew there were so many brands.  He didn’t remember the one Riley had had back in Senoia, just that it was red.  Every brand had every conceivable shade of red….which one was the right one?  What was “gel” nail polish?  What was the difference between Maybelline and Revlon?  A worker happened to walk by, and saw him with his confused face on.  “Sir, can I help you find something?”   
“Yes, miss,” always the gentleman.  “I’m looking for red nail polish for my girlfriend.”   
“Okay.  What brand does she use?”   
“I don’t know.  I was going to paint her toenails for her tonight.”   
“Oh, that’s so sweet!” The girl told him.  

He picked up the bottle marked “gel” nail polish.  “Is this the one I should get?”   
“Oh no!  You need a special light to cure those, and it’s a process to get it off.  You should really only put it on your fingers, but I think it’s damaging.”  She felt for this handsome guy, he was really confused.  “Here,” she pulled a vibrant red of the shelf marked L’Oreal.  “This is one of our best sellers.  Classic red.”   
“Okay.  Yeah.  I think this will work ok.  I need nail polish remover and cotton balls, too.  Where will I find those?”   
“Right at the end of the aisle.  Do you need help with that?”   
“No thanks, I can manage.”

 

Back at the house, Riley was having a full-blown panic attack.  She tried to call Sean 3 more times, but they all went directly to voicemail.  Why was that happening?  Unsure of what else to do she called Norman.  It was already afternoon in Senoia, she knew he’d be home and awake.  He answered on the first ring, chipper.  “Hey Riley!  How’s California treating you?”

“Um...um…” she was breathing in panting short breaths.  Norman knew Riley, and he knew what was happening.  She was having a panic attack.   
“Riley-girl, what’s wrong?”  Lisa’s head snapped up from the paper she was reading, concerned.  Looking at Norman, she mouthed, “What’s wrong?”  He shrugged his shoulders.

“Riley, baby, calm down. What’s wrong, sweetie?”   
Riley managed to get out, “Sean...he’s gone.”   
“What do you mean gone?”  Turning to Lisa he whispered, “Go get your phone!”  Lisa ran to the bedroom and brought it back.   
“I woke up….he’s gone…..keys, phone, wallet, car….”

“Sweetie, have you tried calling him?”   
“Goes straight to voicemail.  Why did he leave me again?” she wailed.   
Norman whispered to Lisa, “Try calling Sean.”  Then to Riley, “Sweetie, you need to calm down.  Please, honey.”   
Lisa whispered, “It goes straight to voicemail.”   
Norman told her, “Ok, baby, Sean probably just stepped out for a moment.  Lisa tried to call him and it went straight to voicemail for her, too.  Maybe he forgot to turn on his phone.”   
“I can’t get home.  I wanna be home.  Why is he doing this?  I was good, I promise!”

Norman’s heart was breaking.  He knew Sean hadn’t abandoned her, he probably just went to run a quick errand and didn’t think twice.  He probably forgot to turn on his phone.

But Riley was inconsolable.

  
In the meantime, Sean was wandering the aisles at CVS.  Should he get her an “I’m sorry” card?  She said no forgiveness was necessary.  Should he get her MORE flowers?  No, he already knew she would have to leave her roses behind, they would wilt and die on the ride home with all that stale airplane air.  Candy?  Nah.  There was nothing else to do or get for her.  He went up to the registers to pay.

Riley had gotten off the phone with Norman and now was on with Lisa.  Norman wanted to see if he could reach Sean, but it went straight to voicemail for him as well.  He was sure that Sean had just not turned on his phone, or maybe it was dead.  He was always forgetting to plug it in; when he stayed with them, Riley used to remind him, and he STILL sometimes forgot.  Lisa was trying to console her as best she could.  “Riley, darling, he hasn’t abandoned you.  That’s HIS house.  He’s coming home.  I know he will.  Please calm down.”  Riley was curled up in a little ball on the living room floor, phone on the ground, ear pressed to it.  “I swear I was good Lisa, I swear.”   
“I believe you, sweetheart.  Sean just went out.  He’ll be right back.”   
Norman was going crazy.  He couldn’t get in contact with Sean either.  He knew they weren’t blocked or anything.  He was going to choke that bastard next time he saw him.

Sean pulled up at his house, totally oblivious.  He parked the car and unlocked his front door; wholly unprepared for what he saw.  He had assumed Riley was still asleep.  Instead, she was on his living room floor, curled up into a tiny ball, shivering.  He dropped the bag and ran to her.   
“Riley!  Baby!  What’s wrong?  Oh my god, honey!  What the hell is going on?”   
He could hear Lisa’s voice shouting, “Sean!  Sean!”

Riley starting bawling, both relieved that he was there and afraid he was going to leave again, and wrapped her arms around his neck.  He picked up Riley’s phone and asked Lisa, “What the hell is going on here?”   
Lisa put her phone on speaker so both she and Norman could scream at him for leaving her like that.  He was holding Riley in his arms trying to comfort her while listening to people scream at him.  Finally he said, “One at a time!  I get you’re mad at me, but I don’t know why!  Why is Riley freaking out?”   
Norman practically spat at him, “You left her alone, you dumbass!  You know she still freaks out!  We all tried to call you!”   
“That can’t be,” Sean told him.  “I took my phone with me and it never went off once.”  He pulled it out of his pocket and continued, “I had it with me and…..oh shit.”   
“What?”   
Sean wanted to kick himself.  “It’s dead.  I forgot to plug it in.  Shit.  Shit shit shit.  But I left her a note, right on my pillow.”  He spoke softly to Riley, “Baby, I left a note on the pillow.”   
She finally spoke.  “No you didn’t.”   
He picked her up in his arms, with Norman and Lisa still yelling in his ear on her phone, and headed upstairs.  He sat Riley on the bed and looked at his pillow.  He left a note, he knew he did!  Where the hell was it?  He looked in the space between the nightstand and the bed, then dropped to his knees and looked under the bed.  Bingo.  He pulled it out and showed Riley.  “It must have fallen when I left.  Babygirl, I am so so sorry.”   
Riley looked at the note.  It said:

“Went to the store real quick.  It’s noon, should be back by 12:30 at the latest.  I have my phone if you need anything.    
\- Sean xoxo”

Sean was telling Norman and Lisa about the note.  Norman said, “Let me talk to her.”  Sean put Riley on, and Norman asked, “Is it true?  Did he leave you a note that fell under the bed?”   
“Yeah,” she said softly, then started crying all over again.  “I’m so sorry, Norman!  I just didn’t know what to do!”   
“Shh, Riley, it’s ok.  You didn’t see the note.  You did exactly what you should have.  You tried to contact him and when you couldn’t, you called me.  That’s exactly what you should have done.”   
“Am I in trouble?”   
Both Lisa and Norman’s hearts broke.  Norman told her, “Of course not, baby.  You’re not in trouble, and you’re not fired, because I know that was your next question.”   
Lisa interjected, “Sweetheart, you did the right thing.”

Sean was kneeling on the floor next to the bed looking miserable.  Riley told Norman and Lisa, “I have to go.  I need to talk to Sean.”  They agreed that that was a good idea, and Lisa said that she would pick Riley up at the airport.

 

“Sean?”

He turned those baby blue eyes up to look at her.   
“Sean, I’m sorry.  I freaked out and-”   
He held up his hand to silence her.  “This is my fault, too.  I should have checked my phone.  I should have just woken you up.  I never should have left you.”   
“You left me a note.”   
“I don’t mean today.”  He put his forehead on her knees.  “I never ever should have left you.”


	41. Chapter 41

“Sean?  We talked about it already.  It’s ok.”

“I’m just so sorry.  I wish I’d never done it.  I feel like an ass.”

“We both made mistakes,” she turned his face up to hers.  Changing the subject, she asked, “What did you go to the store for?”   
Sean gave her a small grin.  “Wait here.”   
He ran downstairs and retrieved the bag from where he’d dropped it and brought it back upstairs, emptying the contents on the bed.  “I wanted to paint your toenails before you left.”  

Riley was touched.  He left to do something nice for her.  “I mean, if that’s ok.”   
“I would love that.”   
  
They stayed in the bedroom, and Riley sat up against the headboard and they watched TV while Sean redid her toes.  She said, “I can’t believe you went out and bought this stuff just to do this.”   
“Why not?  I’ve done your toes before.  I kinda like doing it.  You’ve got these cute, tiny little toes.  Like little baby toes.”   
“Aw.  And you even bought L’Oreal.  Fancy.”   
“I couldn’t remember what brand you had.  There were so many different brands and all these different shades of red.  The lady said this was their best seller.  What kind do you use?”   
“Uh...whatever is on sale.”

 

Sean spent the next 45 minutes removing the old polish and meticulously repainting her toes.  Then, just like the first time, he held her feet in his hands and blew gently on her toes before placing them on the bed.  He turned around to see a sweet smile on her face.  “Sean,” she said softly, “why are you so good to me?”   
“Because you deserve good things.  And because that’s the way I was raised.  And because I know it makes you happy.  And because I wasn’t always so good to you.”  He moved up to the head of the bed next to her and put his arm around her, kissing her temple.  “And because I love you.”

She smiled up at him.  “I love you too.”   
That sat that way for about an hour watching TV, then Sean checked that her toes were dry, and massaged her feet, eliciting a moan of ecstasy from her.  He turned and gave her a look, and she smiled sheepishly.  “I’m on my feet almost all day.  Foot rubs are divine.  It’s part of the reason I pay for pedicures sometimes.  They give you foot rubs.”   
“All you ever had to do was ask,” he told her.  She opened up her mouth to say something, but he stopped her, quipping, “I know, you don’t like to ask for things.  From now on, every time we visit, you get a foot rub.”

Riley leaned back against the headboard and closed her eyes with a contented sigh and a smile.  Meanwhile, Sean’s heart was breaking.  She was going back to Georgia in less than 24 hours.  As always, he didn’t want her to go.

After giving her a foot rub, he slid back up to the head of the bed and sat next to her.  He asked her if she wanted something in particular for dinner, but she said she was fine with just leftovers or raiding the fridge for whatever.  Sean was uncharacteristically quiet, almost morose.  Riley could practically feel the sadness coming off of him in waves.  He had his arm around her, absentmindedly rubbing little circles on her shoulder.  She rested her head on his shoulder, and he dropped a kiss onto it.

Riley finally spoke.  “You ok?”   
“Not really, no.”   
“Is it because I go back to Georgia tomorrow?”   
Sean sighed.  “Yeah.”   
She gave a small laugh, telling him, “I figured after having to spend a whole week with my crazy ass, you’d be glad to be rid of me.”   
Sean didn’t laugh at her joke.  “I’d keep you here if I could.  I’m considering kidnapping you.”

 

Riley didn’t know what to say.  She didn’t want to go but she had to.  She took her responsibilities very seriously, and Norman was expecting her back home.  In the back of her mind, she had known that this week together could make or break them...and it hadn’t broken them at all.  They’d worked through misunderstandings and miscommunications, and were still standing.  

“It will be ok, Sean.”

He didn’t answer her, so she climbed on his lap, straddling him.  Taking his sad face in her hands, she pressed her lips to his softly.  He put his arms around her waist and had a smile when they broke the kiss.  Riley softly whispered, “I knew I could make you smile.”   
Sean pressed his forehead to hers.  “You make me feel like no one else, little one.”

She kissed him again, deeper this time, slipping her tongue between his lips, eliciting a moan from him.  Riley ran her hands down his chest to the hem of his t shirt, pulling it up over his head, running her fingers through his blonde hair and pulling his lips to hers once again.  Sean did the same thing to the long shirt she was wearing that she had thrown on when she searched the house for him, and she had nothing on underneath.  As she was straddling him, she felt him getting hard.  Tugging at the waistband of his pants, she said, “Take these off, baby...” as she climbed off his lap.  Sean got up quickly and took off both his pants and boxer briefs, leaning down and kissing her hotly as he climbed back on the bed.  Riley had him sit back up against the headboard and straddled him again, kissing and touching him until she could feel him fully erect.  Breaking the kiss, she reached down and gently guided him into her, both of them letting out small moans as she slowly slid down his length until he was bottomed out inside of her.

“Riley, babygirl, I-”   
She pressed a finger to his lips.  “Shh.  Just feel.”

Sean put his hands on her beautiful and scarred thighs as she started to ride him slowly, then slid them up and around her back.  Riley looked into his eyes.  She saw anger, fear, upset, and lots of love.  Sean started to blink back tears, and she pulled him close.  “I know,” she whispered.  “It’s ok, I know.”   
“My little angel.  You’re perfect.”

“So are you.”

 

Riley rocked herself slowly on Sean.  He looked at her like he was in awe of her, and he was.  He didn’t know how he’d gotten so lucky.  “You’re so beautiful, Riley…”

She gave him a sweet smile.  “I feel the same way about you.  You’re like the sun.  You’re so gorgeous, it sometimes hurts my eyes to look at you.”

He huffed a small laugh.  “You sure know how to stroke a guy’s ego.”

She reached behind her, saying, “I know how to stroke other things, too….”  She planned on stroking him until he came and passed out again, but he stopped her, pinning her arms behind her.  “Not until I get you off, lady.  Not about to pass out and leave you hanging.”

He held her hands behind her back with one of his much larger hands, noticing how her breath had caught when he did so.     
“You like that, Riley?  You like it when I’m just a little bit rough with you?”   
Riley could only nod.   
“Ride me, little girl.  Ride me and get yourself off.”   
His free hand traveled down to where their bodies were connected, and he started gently rubbing her clit.  Riley started to rock on him a little harder.

“Sean….a little harder, please….”   
“On your clit?”   
“Yeah, just a little….”   
Sean pressed his fingers more firmly against her, and she let out a loud moan.  She leaned forward slightly, and he caught one of her nipples in his mouth, running his tongue over the hard peak again and again.

He finally told her, “I’m letting go of your wrists.  Grab the headboard behind me and show me what you’re made of, girl.”

He kept up his assault on her clit, while one nipple was in his mouth, and the other being abused by the fingers of his free hand.  Riley obediently grabbed the headboard behind him, and using it as leverage, stopped rocking on his lap and started to slide herself up and down his hard cock, impaling herself on him again and again.  Sean reached down and quickly squeezed the base of his cock so he wouldn’t come.  Then told her, “Look at me, baby.”   
She looked down at him.  They were both starting to sweat.  He told her, “I want you to cum for me, dirty girl.”  She immediately started to speed up.   
“That’s it, get yourself off on my cock, babygirl.  Let me hear you scream….”   
He felt her fluttering, she was almost there.   
“Scream my name, bitch!  Let the neighbors hear it!”   
With that he pinched her nipple and her clit at the same time, and watched as she came apart, screaming his name.

 

“OH SEAN!  OH….OHHHH…..SEAN!!!  FUCK ME!  OH SHIT!  OH GOD!  Ohhhhhhh…..” she collapsed against him, giving off little tremors every few seconds.    
“I’ve got you, baby…..I’ve got you, angel….” he soothed her as her shaking calmed down.  He felt like he was on the verge of cumming, he knew if she did what she had done before, that he would definitely pass out again.  She pulled back and smiled at him.  Yep, she was gonna do it.

 

Riley pulled herself off of him and had him slide down on the bed so he wasn’t against the headboard anymore.  Smiling wickedly at him, she climbed back on, facing her ass to him, and leaned toward his knees.  She cupped his balls in her hand, fingers against his taint, and started to ride him again as she gently stroked the seam.  He told her, “If I come in your pussy and pass out, I apologize…”

 

It took less than a minute.

He was already close to cumming when she climbed back on him, plus he had a great view of her tight little ass, plus the shit she was doing with her fingers. 

When he came, he wasn’t even able to say anything intelligible, except for once yelling out, “FUCK!”, followed by a series of caveman-like grunts.   
Sean grabbed on tightly to her hips, and drove himself as deeply as he could with every hot spurt.  Riley looked over her shoulder just as he unloaded his last spurt into her.  He looked at her, opened his mouth as if to say something, then his eyes rolled back in his head as he passed out.

 

Riley slid off of his cock and checked him.  Still breathing, he was ok.  She snuggled up against him, placing a kiss on his chest up above his heart.  

  
Damn it was awesome to do that.


	42. Chapter 42

After about 20 minutes, Sean slowly started to come to.  He thought to himself,  _ ‘God damn, that was amazing.’ _  Riley was snuggled up against him and he put his arm around her.  Looking up at him, she smiled.  “How do you feel?”   
“Like I have been thoroughly and completely fucked.”

 

The light outside was getting dim.  Riley was leaving the next day.   Sean held her close and asked her, “What time does your flight leave?”   
“Noon.”

Sean set his alarm for 7:30, they would have to be there by 10 at the latest.  Stupid TSA and their stupid security checkpoints.  He had half a mind to buy a ticket just so he could wait at the gate with her.

They lay in bed, staring blankly at the TV, not really seeing what was on.  Neither of them wanted their time together to end.  At 11:00 p.m., they turned off the TV, and turned off the light.  The room was light enough to see, and they lay on their sides looking at each other in silence for a long time.  Riley leaned over and kissed Sean gently on the lips, and he pulled her close.  He didn’t know how he was going to go back to sleeping without her.

 

Morning came far too early.  They were both somber and quiet getting ready.  Sean went ahead and put Riley’s suitcase in the car, then came back in and pulled her onto his lap where he just held her.  She told him softly, “It will be ok.  You'll get your schedule and we’ll set up a visit.”  Sean nodded but he had a feeling something was going to go wrong.  

It was finally time to go.  Sean had never had a week pass by so quickly.  He opened the front door, then shut it again, saying simply, “Stay.”  
“Sean, I can’t.”   
“Yes you can.” He turned to face her.  “Norman would understand.  Stay with me.  I know you like it here.  We can send for your stuff, send for Herbie.  Just stay.”   
“I can’t.”   
“Why not?”   
“What will I do for work?  I still have to earn money.”   
“No you don’t!  I’ll take care of you!  I’ll buy you anything you want!  Fucking diamonds, Riley!  Anything!”  He promised her, his voice cracking with emotion.   
“Sean, stop it!  I don’t want to be a woman that you take care of and buy things for!  I want to take care of myself and pull my own weight!  And what would be the point of me staying here when you’re leaving on Wednesday?  If I stayed, I’d be farther away from you.”   
Sean heaved a sigh.  “Yeah.  I guess I just like the idea of you being in my house.”   
“I like the idea, too.  Let me finish my book.  You told me you want me to.”   
“I do.  I’m real proud of you for writing it.”  
“Then let me finish it.”   
With that they left the house and headed for the airport.

 

Sean kissed her goodbye.  Lisa was picking her up as Norman had an evening shoot for the show, and Sean had her promise to text him once they were safely in her vehicle.  He sent her into the security line.  He watched her walk slowly down the hall, looking back every couple of steps.  All she wanted was to run back and jump into his arms.  She got to the end of the hall where she had to make her turn that would take her out of sight, and looked back at Sean.  Shoulders slumped, he looked like his heart was breaking….and it was.  Riley raised her hand to wave, and he waved back.  Then she turned and was gone.

Sean stood there for a bit.  He just couldn’t seem to move.  Finally he was able to drag his feet out to his car in the parking lot.  But he just sat there.  He felt like everything was askew.  He felt right when she was there and wrong when she was gone.  He put the key in the ignition and drove away from the airport and away from his Riley.

 

Sean walked into his front door.  Even the house seemed sad.  It was too quiet, too empty.  He needed to do laundry, so he dragged himself up the stairs to the bedroom.  As he stood there sorting his clothes, he looked over to Riley’s flowers.  They were starting to wilt.  They’d been fine that morning.  It was almost as if they knew she was gone.  He sat on the bed looking at her flowers, and held her pillow, smelling that familiar smell.  That smell that was only Riley.  Sweet and delicious and just HER.  Sean couldn’t help it, tears started to fall.  Riley was the first woman he’d cried over...and the first woman he had cried in front of.

 

Riley slept on the plane.  She had lain awake most of the night, unbeknownst to Sean.  They couldn’t keep doing this back and forth, and she knew it.  While they could handle the occasional Skyping of their relationship if Sean was off shooting a movie, it was no way to handle things on the regular.  Riley wanted to be with him as much as he wanted her to be, but unless she had a job, and a well paying one at that, she could not afford Los Angeles.  Living off of Sean’s generosity was not how she wanted to live, he would grow to resent her.  The book was her best chance.

 

Lisa picked her up at the luggage carousel, and once they were in her car, Riley texted Sean to let him know that she had been safely picked up.  Lisa waited for Riley to tell her all about the trip, but she was so quiet.  Finally she just said out of the blue, “He wanted me to stay, Lisa.  He wanted me to stay with him.  But I couldn’t.”   
“Oh darling,” Lisa said sympathetically.  “We know this is hard on the both of you.”   
Riley huffed a laugh.  “He offered to take care of me.  He said he would buy me anything I wanted, even diamonds and I said no!  What kind of idiot turns down a chance like that?”

Lisa was quiet for a moment and then told her, “A girl who isn’t an idiot.  You are much too independent to be a kept woman, and you once told me that diamonds aren’t your style.”

She was right.  Riley would never be happy living like that.  It was weird for her to even work for Norman in the beginning, with his extremely generous paychecks and flexible schedule.

“I just hate being apart from him.  I knew this week together would kind of make or break us, and it definitely didn’t break us.  It hurts to leave him, and I know he hurts, too.”

“I wish I could give you some brilliant advice, but I can’t.  Norman and I...we knew we were fond of one another, but we made no commitments until I moved here.  I know you can’t afford to move there, and Sean can’t move here.  Norman mentioned to me that you are writing a book about your experience.  He said what you’d let him read was remarkably good.  Are you hoping to have it published?”   
“Yes.  If it gets published and makes a little money, then maybe I could move to L.A.”   
“All I can tell you then is to do your best to finish the book.  Spend every weekend that you don’t see Sean working on it.  Get it done and get it out there.”   
  
They were pulling into the driveway and saw Norman’s car.  He must have gotten done early.  Riley came in with Lisa, and Norman pulled her into a hug.  “Welcome home, sweetie!  I missed having you around!”   
“Thanks boss.”  She gave him a sad smile and headed to her room to unpack.

Norman and Lisa had a quick chat.  She told him what Riley had said in the car, then she had to head home as well.

 

There was a knock on her open door, and Riley looked up.  Norman was standing in her doorway.  “Mind if I come in?”   
“Sure thing.”   
Norman pulled the chair from Riley’s vanity and turned it backward straddling it.  He rested his arms on the back and watched her unpack.  Neither of them said anything until Riley’s suitcase was almost empty, then Norman spoke softly.

“Do you wanna talk about it?”

“About what?”   
“Come on, Ri.  You know damn well Lisa told me what you guys talked about in the car.  Are you ok?”

Riley heaved a sigh.  She slid the now empty suitcase under the bed and sat down.  “No, not really.  At the risk of sounding dramatic, my heart hurts.  I need to finish this book, but at the same time, so what if I do?  It may not ever get published.  And I can’t live here forever.  If nothing works out, I’ll be back working at Bailey’s and living in the trailer park.  Normally that wouldn’t even bother me, but I’ve got a big fucking variable in the equation and it’s name is Sean.  I just cannot afford to live there.  There is no job that I am qualified for that will make me enough to live on in L.A.  And really, being live-in help is a cool job, but I wouldn't want to do it for some rich fucks in Beverly Hills.  After I left Portland, I didn’t ever want to do it again.  I only took this job with you because my job literally went up in flames.  I only stayed because I like working for you and I like living in a house with a pool.  And damn, that makes me sound like the most shallow, ungrateful bitch ever.”

Norman started laughing.  “It doesn’t!  Lisa used to tell me she only dated me for my pool.  You need to finish the book.”  He ran his hands through his hair.  “I’ve got a confession to make, and you might hate me for it, and if you do I’m sorry,” he told her.   
“What confession?”

“I showed your first 25 pages to Luann,” when Riley gave him a confused look, he continued, “My editor who did ‘Big Bald Head’ and ‘Niceness’.”   
Riley’s eyes got big and she yelled at him, “You did WHAT?”

Norman stood up from the chair he was in and tried to calm her, “Settle down, Ri.  She said it was really good.  And since I don’t want to take the brunt of this….Sean showed it to Ghia down at Hachette Books...they did ‘Jane Two’ and-”   
“WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU TWO?”   
“Ri, we just wanted to help.”   
“By going behind my back?”

“Please don’t look at it that way.  We both thought it was damn good.  And both editors think so too.”   
Riley grabbed her cell phone, telling Norman, “I know this is your house, but please get out of my room.  I need to yell at my boyfriend in peace.”   
Norman left without a word.  She was already dialing, he didn’t even have a chance to warn Sean.  

 

Sean was sitting on his couch watching TV, still holding Riley’s pillow.  He’d wanted to call her, but it was almost 11 in Georgia, she had probably fallen right into bed.  So he was pleasantly surprised when his phone rang and her face popped up.  He answered quickly, “Hey baby!  I was just thinking about you, but figured it was too late to-”   
“Sean Patrick Flanery, just who the hell do you think you are?!”   
“Uh...what?”   
“What the fuck is wrong with you?”   
“Uh...what?!”   
“God damn you!”   
“Uh...WHAT?  Riley, what the hell are you yelling at me for?”   
“You showed the part of the book I sent you to your editor!  That wasn't yours to show, Sean!”   
Dammit.  Norm sold him out.

“Norman showed it to his editor to, you know.  He-”   
“Yes I know!  Why do you think he told me about you?  Believe me, I’ve already screamed at him.  Who else has seen it?  Did you sell an excerpt to Reader’s Digest too?”

“Riley, of course not!”   
“I can’t believe you guys did that.  Do you have any idea how betrayed I feel?”   
“Honey, please-”   
“Don’t you ‘honey please’ me, you asshole!”   
Suddenly, Sean exploded.  “Dammit, Riley, shut up and let me talk!”  He felt bad, but she wouldn’t let him get a word in edgewise.

He heard her small voice over the phone.  “You yelled at me.”   
“I’m sorry, baby.  I really am, but you need to let me talk.  You called me and didn’t even say hello, you just started screaming and swearing at me.  I’m sorry I yelled, but so did you, and you need to let me talk, okay?”

There was a pause and then her voice, still tiny, “Okay.”

Sean took a breath and told her what he and Norman had done.  They both thought it was excellent, and they decided to show it to their editors just to see if it was as good as they thought.  They did this so that if it wasn’t, they could steer her away from big publishers.  “We were going to have you self-publish if need be.  We were going to put up our own money for it, that’s how good we think it is.”  But both publishers had said it was good...very good.  “Ghia even wants to see more.  She’s really interested in your story, and she said you’re a good writer.  We did it because we care about you sweetie.  Not to go behind your back or betray you.  But because we believe in you.”

Silence on the line.  For a moment, Sean thought the call had dropped until he heard sniffling.  “Ri?  You okay?”   
More sniffling, then, “Yeah.  I’m an asshole, but I’m okay.  Why didn’t you tell me?”   
“Because we were afraid you’d act, well...exactly like you did.  Believe me, we were only trying to help, angel.  We would never do anything just outright mean.”

More sniffling, then, “I gotta go.  I owe Norman an apology.”   
“Okay, babygirl.  Then get some sleep and we’ll Skype tomorrow.”

 

Riley walked out to the living room where Norman had the TV on and was playing Candy Crush on his phone.  He looked up at her when she came in.  He watched as her face crumpled and she wailed, “I’m so sorry!”

Norman got up and rushed over to her, wrapping her up in his big arms.  “It’s okay, sweetie.  I take it Sean got you to listen to him?”   
“Yeah.  God I’m such a butthead.”   
Norman laughed at that.  “You’re not a butthead, but I’m glad you know.  I never liked keeping secrets from you, you’re too good of a friend,” he told her, kissing the top of her head.  “Just...please don’t scream at me again, Ri.  You had your angry face on.  I’ve only seen that used on Sean.”


	43. Chapter 43

Sean and Riley did their normal Skyping for the next few days.  Sean wouldn’t get his shooting schedule until he got to Toronto on Wednesday.  Late Wednesday afternoon, she was watching a movie with Norman when he Facetimed her.   
She answered it happily, “Hi sweetie!”

Sean did not look happy.  He looked a mix of angry and miserable.   
“I don’t suppose you got your passport, by some miracle?”

“Of course not.  It hasn’t even been a week since I applied.”   
He let out a heavy sigh.  “Riley, we are so fucked.”

Norman interjected, “Why?  I already told you you’re welcome here.  Why does she need to come to you all of a sudden?”   
“Because I just got our shooting schedule.  We are shooting six days a week for 12 - 14 hours a day.”   
Riley’s heart fell to the floor.  “What?”   
“You heard me.  Six weeks, Ri.  Six weeks of not seeing each other.”   
Riley couldn’t believe it.  “You don’t get any days off?”   
“No, I’m playing the main character.  There aren’t hardly any scenes without me in them.  If you had your passport, you could come and we could at least see a little of each other, but no.  Riley never had a passport,” he said in a mocking tone.

Norman took Riley’s phone and told Sean, “That’s enough of that.  Don’t put this on her.  She never needed one before.  This isn’t her fault.”

“You’re right,” Sean said as Norman handed the phone back to Riley.  “I’m sorry baby.  It’s just that with a schedule like that, I don’t even know when or if we’ll have a chance to Skype or Facetime.”   
“I always keep my phone with me,” she reminded him.  “So we’ll do like we did when you worked on that TV movie.  You can contact me whenever you have time.  You know I go to bed at about midnight and I get up about 8.  We’ll be ok.  We’ll work it out.”   
“I can believe I have to go 6 weeks without being close to you.”   
Norman interjected again.  “When you’re done, you’ll come here for the weekend.  I’ll leave the house for a few hours so you two can tear each other apart.”  With that he headed to the kitchen to get something to drink.

They laughed and then Riley watched as Sean reached out and ran his fingertips along the screen as if he were touching her face.   
“I miss you so much already, babygirl.”   
“I know.  I miss you, too.”   
“I love you, Riley.”   
“I love you, too, Sean.  We’ll be ok.”

 

Norman had meant to give them privacy, but he could still hear them. He wished he could do something for them, but there was nothing.  He could hear how much they were hurting, and how much they really loved each other.  His two best friends were both suffering and he was powerless to help either one of them.

He came in and sat back down.  “I’m so sorry, Ri.  I wish there was something I could do.”   
Riley just shrugged.  She was upset, but their hands were tied.  She couldn’t get to him and he couldn’t come to her.  “Maybe this is a good thing.  They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I need to finish the book.  Maybe this is just what I need.”

Norman was somewhat uncomfortable with how calm she was.  It wasn’t like her.  “Awfully pragmatic of you, Ri.”   
“Well, this really can’t be fixed.  I mean I could scream and cry and throw things, but it wouldn’t change anything.  I mean he and I will still see each other on Skype and Facetime.  It’s not like we won’t have any contact.”

 

Norman was surprised.  She was right, but still.  She just seemed a little too okay with it.  That wasn’t her.  He was glad she wasn’t having a meltdown….but normally she would be.  What was going on?  At least he knew they’d be burning up the computers with their Skype calls, that was for sure.

 

For three weeks, they Skyped and Facetimed whenever they got a chance.  Riley worked diligently on her book, even getting her medical records from the hospitals to be sure she got everything right.

During Riley and Sean’s fourth week apart, she sat and had a talk with Norman.

 

“I’m about ¾ finished with my book.”   
“Really?  That’s great!”   
“Um...remember when you said that you would give me two weeks paid vacation?”   
“Yeah…”   
“Well, I need a favor from you.”   
  


They talked for over an hour.   
  


“Riley, are you sure this is what you want to do?  What about Sean?”   
“What about him?  He’s a big boy.  He’ll get over it.”   
Norman ran a hand through his hair.  “Riley, I don’t know about this.  It feels...wrong.”   
“Come on, Norman!  I have never asked for anything from you.  I am asking for this.  This one thing.  Please.”   
“But Sean…”   
“He might not even know what we’re doing.”

“He’s not stupid.”   
“Norman, I’ll deal with him.  Please.”

Norman sighed.  She really didn’t ask for anything.  And this would be good for her.  “Okay.”

 

By that Wednesday, Riley was on a plane to New York.  She was using her other week of vacation to stay in Norman’s penthouse alone and finish the book with no distractions.  She hadn’t mentioned it to Sean, although she knew he would find out as soon as he Skyped or Facetimed her.  But she needed to finish this

Landing at JFK, she took a cab to the penthouse.  Letting herself in, she opened up some of the windows to get the stale, closed up smell out.  She grabbed her purse and went to the small market a few blocks away and got herself enough groceries to get her through the week, then headed back to the penthouse.  It seemed weird without Norman there.  Riley set up her laptop, logged into the wifi and got to work.

Later that evening her Skype pinged on.  It was Sean, she knew it.  She thought,  _ ‘Here goes nothing,’   _  and answered.

 

Poor Sean was exhausted.  “Hey babygirl.”   
“Hey Seanie.  How’s filming going?”   
Sean narrowed his eyes, and leaned closer to the screen.  “Riley, where are you?  You aren’t at home.”   
“Uh….I’m at Norman’s penthouse.”   
“But he’s still filming the show.”   
“I’m here by myself.”   
“WHAT?!”  Sean practically roared.  “What the hell are you doing there all by yourself?  Have you lost your damn mind, woman?”   
Well she expected him to be upset, but not like that.  She was stunned.

Sean yelled at her again.  “Answer me, god dammit!”

Riley couldn’t believe what she was hearing.  This was one of the few times she’d seen Sean angry, and it was directed at her.  Her eyes filled with tears, and she managed to squeak out in a small voice, “Why are you yelling at me?”

Sean’s face and attitude changed instantly.  “Oh shit, Ri.  I’m sorry.  Please don’t cry, baby.  Please.  Ah, dammit.  But why are you in New York all alone?  Why didn’t you tell me?  I can’t keep you safe if I don’t know where you are, and I promised myself I would always keep you safe.”

Riley wiped away her tears, even though more continued to fall.  “I came here because I’m almost finished with my book.  I needed to go somewhere with no distractions.  So I used up my other week’s vacation to-”   
Sean put his mad face on again.  “You did what?”   
Riley’s bottom lip quivered, and she said, “Don’t yell at me again.”   
Sean took a deep breath to calm down, then asked, “Baby, WHY did you use your other week’s vacation?  You could have used that to spend with me again!  Don’t you even want to see me?  Because let me tell you, little girl, I kind of feel like I’m dying over here without you and you don’t even seem to care!”

  
  


With that statement, Riley just shut down.  Sean saw it happen and started to freak out. “No no no, Ri!  Come on now!  Don’t shut down on me!  Now more shutting down, remember?  Come on baby, please!”   
Her face totally blank, she simply said, “I have to go.  Bye,” and ended the Skype call.  It rang again with him, almost immediately, and she simply shut it off completely.  Then her cell phone went off from him, and she sent it to voicemail.  She went back into her Google Drive and started typing away on her book.  Riley felt that she had gone there to do a job, and she was going to do it.  Her phone rang with Norman’s ringtone and she answered it.

“Hey boss.”   
“Riley,” he said sounding tired, “you need to talk to Sean.  He’s freaking out.”   
“No, I don’t.  I need to eat and drink and breathe and shit, and right now I need to finish my book without any interruptions.  He can’t understand that.  And honestly, it’s not your job to play referee.”   
Norman sighed.  “You’re right.  On all counts.”   
“I’ll talk to Sean again when I get back to Senoia.  Maybe then he’ll calm down.  But if he keeps blowing up my phone with voicemails and texts, I may temporarily block his number.  He yelled at me and swore at me and used his angry face.  He seems to think that me being here means I don’t care about him.  I don’t have time to deal with that.”   
“I’m sorry, did you say he yelled and swore at you?”   
Riley recounted the entire short conversation with Sean to Norman, and he was livid.  “I’m gonna kill that fucker!”   
“No you’re not.  This is between me and him.  He needs to cool off, and I’ve got work to do.”   
“Ok Riley-girl.  You know I love you, right?”   
Riley smiled.  “Yep.  I love you too, boss.”

“Call me if you need anything.  I’ll check on you in a couple of days.”

 

Norman ended that call with Riley, and called Sean back.  “You stupid fucker!  You yelled and swore and used your angry face with her?  What the hell is wrong with you?”

“I panicked, ok?”   
“Well you better lay off the texts and voicemails.  If you don’t she’s gonna block your number until she comes home.”   
Sean was quiet, then softly said, “Dammit.  I just want to protect her.”   
“I know you do, but she doesn’t need to be protected like that anymore.  Kevin is gone.  Besides, except for buying some groceries when she first got there, I don’t think she’s even left the apartment.  Just let Riley be Riley.”

Sean heaved a sigh.  “Yeah, you’re right.  I’ll back off and let her work.”   
  
After hanging up from Norman, he sent Riley one more text.   
“Ri, I’m sorry I was an ass, and I know I was wrong.  Please forgive me.  It would help me a lot if you could maybe just send me text just once a day so I know you’re ok.  I worry about you being alone.”

Riley looked at the text from Sean and replied.   
“Wednesday.  I’m ok.”

Sean was happy she at least had replied with that.  He fought the urge to text her again, opting instead to go to bed early.

 

On Friday, Norman checked in on her.  Riley was nearly done, she was sure she would finish it by the time she came home.  He asked about Sean and she told him about how she texted him once a day to let him know she was okay.  “I know he’s worried and he cares,” she said, “but I need to finish this and I can’t do it with him breathing down my neck.”

Saturday morning, Riley sent Sean her daily text, “Saturday.  I’m ok.” Later that morning, she was startled by a knock on the door.  Nobody knew she was there.  Nobody knew ANYBODY was there.  

Walking toward the door, she called out, “Who’s there?”

A slightly nasally voice replied, “1-800-FLOWERS delivery.  Flowers for Riley Maxwell.”

She peeked out the peephole and saw someone hidden by some sunflowers.  She smiled, she was wearing a blue sundress with sunflowers on it.  They must have been sent by Norman or Sean.  

Opening the door wide, she said, “I’m Riley.”   
The flowers lowered.

“Hi, pretty girl.”


	44. Chapter 44

When the door first opened, Sean had the sunflowers hiding his face.  Looking down, he saw Riley’s little bare feet, and his heart caught in his throat.  When she said, “I’m Riley,” he started to get hard.  It was almost a Pavlovian response to her.  He lowered the flowers, smiled, and said, “Hi, pretty girl.” 

Riley just looked at him, unmoving.  She blinked twice, but he was still there.  She said, “Sean?”  She looked absolutely beautiful, in a short blue sundress with sunflowers on it.

Finally Sean spoke.  “I know I should have called, but I’ve only got 36 hours.  I have to go back tomorrow night.  I couldn’t go another day without - MMMPH!”

Riley all but attacked him, almost knocking him down, and pressing her lips against his and wrapping her legs around his waist.  Grabbing onto her with his one free hand, he kicked his carry on bag that was on the floor into the entryway.  He dropped the sunflowers to the floor and kicked the door shut behind them, never once breaking the kiss that had their tongues tangling and their movements frenzied.  Riley unwrapped her legs from his waist and stood, unbuttoning and unzipping his pants, and pushing them down just enough to pull out his hard cock. Sean pushed up Riley’s dress, and in his haste to pull her string side blue panties off, just ripped them completely from her body.  He muttered into the kiss, “Sorry,” and her response was, “Don’t care.”

 

He lifted her by her thighs and slipped into her easily, breaking the kiss to just look at her.  God he missed that sweet face.  She broke the spell by simply saying, “Please fuck me, Sean.  HARD.”  Her back against the wall, he thrust into her almost painfully hard.  “Can’t be doing this to me, girl,” he panted.  “Almost 5 goddamn weeks without you.  Never again, baby.  You hear me?  NEVER AGAIN!  Say it, angel!  You promise me right now!”  Sean was almost in tears, as was Riley.

She cried out, “Never again, I promise!” just as their orgasms barreled down on both of them.  Sean let out a guttural groan with each spurt inside of her as she tightened on him, then slid to the floor still buried deep inside of her, and holding her close.  Riley was sobbing, and although Sean was in tears as well, he did his best to comfort her.   
“Shh shh…..it’s ok, babygirl….I’m here.  Is that why you’re crying?  Are you mad that I’m here?” he asked, suddenly afraid that his plan had gone awry.   
“No!” she said into his neck.  “I missed you so much!  I had to keep busy.  I had to kind of disassociate myself from it, or it would have killed me!  I couldn’t get you to understand because I didn’t really understand…”   
He rocked her gently in his arms.  “I’m so sorry, baby.  Never again.  Never.  I’m sorry for not understanding.  I’m sorry for yelling and swearing at you.  I would rather die than hurt you, baby.”  He pulled back and looked at her.  “You are everything to me, Riley.  I would do anything for you.  I’ll give up this career and move to Senoia if I have to.  I’d give up everything for you,” he started to weep again.   
Riley took his face in her hands.  “Don’t you dare, Sean.  I would never ask that and I sure as hell wouldn’t allow that.  Besides,” she continued with a small smile playing on her mouth.  “What the hell kind of job could you get?”   
“Well, I’m actually good with cars, so I could be mechanic.  And when I first got to L.A., I waited tables, so I could wait tables at the diner….plus, I’m working on my second book.  I would do whatever I had to to make you happy.  You could work at the bar, I could work at the diner, and we could live back in the trailer park.  Whatever you wanted me to do.”  

Riley smiled at him.  “The only thing I want you to do right now is take me to bed,” she whispered in his ear.   
Without another word, he stood up with her still in his arms, and his cock still buried in her box and getting hard again.  He carried her off to the room she directed him to.  He had 36 hours, and he would do whatever she wanted him to do.  If she wanted him to leave her alone to work, he would, but he’d just had to see her in person.

 

An hour later, they were laying in each other’s arms, exhausted.  Sean explained that there was some kind of special klieg lights that they were waiting for from the states that got held up in Canadian customs.  Next thing they knew, they had nothing to do until Monday, so Sean went straight to the airport and bought a ticket for the first flight to New York, running through the airport and just barely making it before they closed the gates.  He had already booked his flight back on a red eye late Sunday night.  “I know I should have called you, I know you’re working.  But I just had to see you.  I felt like I was dying.  Speaking of, the roses I got you that stayed blooming the entire time you were there?  They started to wilt when I got back from taking you to the airport.  They were dead the next day.  It’s like they knew you were gone and couldn’t see a reason to keep blooming.  They looked exactly how I felt.”

Riley’s heart just about exploded when he said that.  “It’s ok that you didn’t call.  Best surprise ever.”

Sean rolled over onto his side and faced her.  “Am I allowed to ask how the book is going?”   
Riley gave him a big smile.  “I think I can finish it before I go back to Senoia.”   
“Even with me showing up like this?”   
“Yep.”

Sean smiled and hugged her.  “I am so proud of you, Ri!  You are so amazing.  You lived through it, and then went through it all again to write it down.  Do I get to see it?”   
“Yeah.  When I finish, I’ll email it to you.  Um….” she hesitated.

“What?”   
“Would you consider writing a forward for it?  I’d like for both you and Norman to do it after you read it.  You guys were part of it.  I want you to have a say.”   
Sean smiled at her.  “I would be honored to write something for it.”  He leaned over and kissed her.  “But right now, I would be honored to do something else…” he told her as he slid down between her legs, smiling up at her wickedly.

 

He looked at her, all pink and wet.  “Damn, Ri.  Your pussy is so fucking gorgeous.”  He leaned down and started placing hot, open mouthed kisses all over it gently, then slowly slid his tongue inside her as far as he could.  He watched as Riley arched her back and sighed.  This woman...this gorgeous, amazing woman was with him.  She reached down, threading her fingers through his hair.   He gently sucked on her clit, then slid up her body, needing to be inside her again.  As he slid his length inside her and started to pump gently in and out, he ran his fingertips along her face.  “Riley, you’re just so damn beautiful.  I can’t get over it.”  She smiled up at him, “I think you’re pretty beautiful, too.” 

Lacing his fingers through hers, he sped up his thrusts, but still kept them even and gentle.  He couldn’t take his eyes off of her.     
“I love you, Sean.”  She said it so softly, that Sean got a lump in his throat.     
“I can feel it, babygirl.  I feel how much you love me in my heart.  How is that possible?  How can I feel it?”   
Riley couldn’t answer.  She felt the same.  Nothing else mattered in this moment.  Not her book.  Not Sean’s movie.  Him sliding in and out of her, going faster and faster, that was all that mattered.  Them, together, right now, was everything.  Everything.

“Oh god, Sean,” Riley breathed out.     
He pressed his forehead against her as he neared his climax.  Looking into her eyes, he said, “I’ll love you forever, Riley.  Forever.”

That set off Riley’s orgasm.  She wailed both from him pummeling her pussy like a wild man and the opposite extreme of his sweet declaration.  Her tightening up like a hot, velvet vise around his cock had him calling it out again and again as he emptied himself inside of her.  He collapsed on top of her, both of them breathing heavily.

Sean lifted his head up.  “I mean it girl.  Forever.  As soon as you finish this book, you’re coming to L.A. to live with me.”   
“Sean, I can’t-”   
He heaved a sigh as he rolled off of her.  “Why the fuck not, Ri?   My god, I die a little every day that you aren’t there!  Don’t you get it?  I need you in my life.  What do I need to do to make you understand?”

“One thing at a time, ok?  Book first.  Everything else later.”   
Sean was silent and then asked her softly, “Is it a ring, Riley?  Is that what you’re waiting for?  Because I could-”   
“Don’t you dare, Sean Patrick!”   
Her outburst stunned him.

She continued on.  “I just told you, one thing at a time!  Don’t you DARE throw that into the mix!  We are not ready, you know that as well as I do.  If you give me a ring, it had better be because you love me and want to spend the rest of your life with me, not because you are lonely and want me to warm your damn bed!”

She got up, opened a drawer, pulled out a pair of panties, and put them on, then pulled her sundress on.  Sean watched as she picked up and folded his clothes, placing them on the bureau before walking out.  She was back a moment later with his carry on bag.  At least she wasn’t kicking him out.  Riley didn’t come back, so Sean just put on a pair of pants and went out to find her.  Her flowers were in a vase on the table, and she was standing out the large picture windows staring out at nothing.   
“Riley?”

She softly said, “If it’s not one thing with you, Sean, it’s another.  Do you know how much that wears me out?”  She turned to face him, and he was silent.   
“I know you want me in L.A., because you tell me ALL THE TIME.  But what about what *I* want Sean?  Do you have any idea what I want?”   
Sean shook his head no, ashamed to admit it.  He had been so wrapped up in what he wanted, and he had assumed she wanted the same thing.  That was unfair.

Hanging his head, he admitted it.  “I’m sorry, baby.”  He couldn’t even think of a time where he had ever asked her what she wanted from their relationship, from him.  “I’ve been pretty selfish.”

  
He and Riley sat down and had a talk, a REAL talk.  She explained that even though she would like nothing more than to be with him in California, she felt he was rushing and pushing things.  She told him, “I love you.  I love you a LOT.  But we’re moving really fast, and sometimes it scares me.”   
“We’ve know each other for two years, Ri.”   
“But we’ve only been a couple for a short time.”   
Sean was silent, then asked, “Well, what do YOU want Riley?  You’re right, I’ve got no idea.”   
Riley told him exactly what she wanted.  She wanted stability, but on HER terms.  She didn’t want Sean taking care of her financially, she wanted to have her own money.  “I know you want me to come live with you.  I want it too, but what if I move there, and six months later it all falls apart?  If I have no money, I’ll be in a real bind.  I’ll be stuck in the most expensive state in the nation with nowhere to go.  I can’t depend on Norman to let me come back.  I know he wants to eventually move Lisa in.  I don’t want to be stranded somewhere.  I’m in my 40’s.  How many fresh starts am I supposed to get?”   
“I’m hurt that you think it will just fall apart.”   
“I don’t think that, I’m just saying what if it does?  I want to be prepared for the worst case scenario.  I love you.  But you’re really rushing me, and I don’t like that.  I already travel cross country for you every two weeks, and that is exhausting.  I got sick coming home the last time, remember?”   
Sean remembered.  Some asshole on the plane had been coughing all over the place, and Riley got sick.  It was just a cold, but still.  And Norman had been more than generous with giving her Fridays off when she went to see him.  Sean asked her, “How about if we switch off?  It really isn’t fair for you to do all the travelling.  How about we take turns?  I mean, if I’m working, I may not be able to come to you, so you may still end up doing more of the travelling.  But maybe we could switch off.  Does that sound good, Ri?”   
Riley smiled at him.  He was finally understanding.  He was trying.  There was hope for them yet.  “I think that would be perfect.  This is a great start.”


	45. Chapter 45

Riley made dinner for them, then they sat on the couch watching the sunset through the big plate glass windows.  Putting his hands on her shoulders, he noticed the tension in them.  “You’re awfully tense, babygirl.”

“I don’t think it’s tension so much as spending hours at the computer typing.  I try to keep my posture correct, but I sometimes catch myself hunching over.  I thought about it, and I do it mostly when I write about...him and what he did to me.”   
Sean’s blood started to boil and he scowled.  He was glad her back was to him so she wouldn’t see it.  Riley never should have had to deal with him, and she did it TWICE.  And then he tried to bust in, like some superhero gone wrong, and SHE had to rescue HIM.  He started to knead her shoulders, but apparently, he was angry still.

“Ow!  Sean, you’re hurting me!”   
“Oh shit, sweetie, I’m sorry.  Sometimes I forget my own strength.”  He started rubbing her shoulders again, more gentle this time, but she pulled away and turned to look at him.  “It’s over, baby.  He can’t hurt me or anyone else.”   
“I know.”

“Then why do you have your grumpy face on?”

Sean rubbed his hands over his face and told her.  He told her how he always felt he’d failed her.  That he’d come to rescue her, but in the end she had to get up on a broken ankle and a battered body, and take out the bad guy herself.     
Riley listened to everything he said, and then sat quietly for a moment.  She walked over and picked up her laptop.    
“I want to read you something I wrote in the book, ok?”   
“Sure.”   
Riley opened up her book and scrolled for a moment, then found what she was looking for.   
“‘I knew Kevin wasn’t going to give me a chance to live through it this time.  I had no idea how long I’d been on that table.  I’d been beaten, stabbed and cut.  He’d ripped clumps of my hair out from the roots.  He’d spit on me, screamed at me, raped me, and bit me.  I was freezing, and in more pain than I thought was possible.  I had hoped over and over that I’d go into shock, but I wasn’t that lucky.  In the end, I was praying for death,’” Riley looked up and saw Sean had tears in his eyes.  She kept reading.   
“‘Kevin pulled out a hammer, telling me this was how he was going to kill me.  That he was going to bash my skull in and leave my body there.  Lord knows when or if they would have found what was left of me.  I was sorry for running away from the house.  I was sorry for speeding off without the security detail.  I had hoped he was gone, but he’d just laid in wait.  Were the guys looking for me?  Did they think I’d just decided to take off once and for all?  I had no way of knowing that not only were the guys out looking for me, but the entire police force in Senoia, plus most of the cops from neighboring towns and a ton of Georgia State Troopers were all trying desperately to find me.  Kevin stuck the hammer in my face and said to me, “You see this hammer?  This is how you die tonight.  I was gonna just choke you, but I can’t be sure that would do the trick.  I don’t wanna have to hang around to see if you wake up or not.  I’m sure you wish you’d died the first time, don’t you?”  When I didn’t answer he grabbed a handful of my hair that was still left and forced me to nod yes.  Then he told me, “Gonna finish you off, get the hell out of this one horse town, and leave you in this barn to rot.”  I remember him raising the hammer, and I remember praying for it to be quick.  And then an angel burst into that broken down old barn.  Sean had found me, somehow, and he came crashing in and calling my name.  Kevin threw the hammer at Sean’s chest, and it hit him with a horrible cracking sound.  But Sean busting in like that gave us an advantage.  I pushed myself off the table, falling to the ground, and grabbed one of Kevin’s knives.  I’m still not sure how I managed to stand back up.  I saw Kevin kick Sean in the jaw, and it looked like Sean was about to go down for the count.  Kevin raised up the hammer above Sean.  He was screaming, “Looks like I get a 2 for 1 tonight.  You die, and so does Riley.  I’ll be famous!  Face it ninja boy, you couldn’t keep her safe from me.  I’m fucking invincible!” I hopped over on the ankle that wasn’t broken and as I drove the knife through his neck, I held onto his shoulder for leverage.  

I wouldn’t let him hurt Sean.

I wouldn’t let him hurt anyone else, ever again.   
  


Because of Sean busting into that barn, we are both alive, and Kevin is dead.

Because of Sean, Kevin won’t hurt another woman.   
Because of Sean, I’m still alive.

And because of Sean, I’m loved.’”

 

Riley closed her laptop and looked at Sean.  He had tears running down his face.  She said, “You were the best superhero ever.  You saved us both.”   
Sean started to loudly sob, and pulled Riley into his arms.  “I should have found you sooner.  Fuck, I never should have said what I did and made you run off.”   
“Sean, it’s actually good you did.  We got him.  We stopped him.  He’d probably still be hanging around Senoia, god knows where, waiting for me to be alone.  I’d still have the secret service following me around, maybe for the rest of my life.  I’d never be able to leave Norman’s side.  I’d always be afraid.  I’m not afraid now.  I spent time with the Devil in Hell, and I ended up with an angel.  You’re my guardian angel, Sean.”

 

They stayed on the couch, wrapped around each other.  Sean’s sobs eventually calmed down.  He whispered, “I always felt like I failed you.”   
“You’re the reason I’m sitting here right now.  Can’t you see that?  You saved me.  And then I saved you right back.”   
“In more ways than one, little angel.”

“Let’s go to bed, Sean.”   
  
That was the best idea Sean had heard.  They put the dirty dishes in the dishwasher, and Sean took the garbage out to the garbage chute in the hallway and dropped it down.  They locked up for the night and headed for Riley’s room.  Norman had told her she could stay in his room while she was there, but she felt weird about it, and stayed in her own instead.

 

Sean was laying in her bed, shirtless in a pair of pajama pants.  Riley was in her bathroom, directly across the hall, and he was watching her do her evening routine.  Brushing her teeth, washing her face, putting on her evening moisturizer.  How come no matter what she did, she was cute?  Oh yeah, he was in love with her.  He wondered if she’d still seem as cute at 80 years old, putting her teeth into a glass on the nightstand right next to his, then decided that yes, she would.  That thought startled him.  That was a long way in the future.  He was considering a future….with her in it.  As frightening as that was, he liked it.  Sean knew better than to say anything.  After all, Riley had been right: it was too soon, and with him it was always one thing after another.  He had never realized that until she brought it up.  He needed to let the poor girl breathe.  But he really liked the idea of it.

 

Riley came into the bedroom, Sean smiling sweetly at her from the bed.   
“What are you smiling at?”   
“My pretty girl.”

She crawled across the bed and straddled his lap.  “So now what do we do?”   
Sean put his hands on her hips, looked into her eyes, and told her, “Massive cuddle fest.  Definitely.”   
Riley raised an eyebrow at him, and he told her, “I meant what I said weeks ago: it doesn’t have to be all sex all the time.  I just want...scratch that, I NEED to be close to you whenever possible.  Believe me, I am banging you again before I leave.  But right now, I just want you here with me.”   
She climbed off of him and cuddled into his side.  “I like that plan.  TV?”   
“Mmmm, nah.  How about if I read to you?”   
Riley’s eyes lit up.  “You’d do that for me?”   
“There isn’t a whole lot I wouldn’t do for you, princess.  Do you have something you’re reading now?”  He knew Riley was a voracious reader.  She carried a book in her purse at all times.  That way, if she was ever stuck in a line at the pharmacy or post office, she would pull it out and start reading.   
“Let me go get it.”   
Sean watched her hustle out of the room, cute little ass wiggling in those sleep shorts.  Damn, he really hit the jackpot with her.

 

Riley was just walking back into the room when it happened.   
THUNK!

“Ow ow ow!”   
Sean jumped out of the bed into the hallway in a panic.  “Riley!  What’s wrong?”  He came out in the hallway to find her leaning against a wall, holding her foot.   
“I hit my toe on the damn door frame!”

Sean heaved an inward sigh of relief.  He scooped her up in his arms, and deposited her on the bed.  It took some coaxing to get her to let go of her foot so he could look at it.

“It really hurts”   
“Baby, let me see it and make sure it’s not broken.”   
She finally extended her bare foot to him.  He took a look.  Her poor pinky baby toe was bright red.  He gently manipulated it, earning him a grimace of pain from her.  He looked closely to make sure she hadn’t cracked the nail or anything.   
“It looks like it will be ok, sweetie.  You whacked it pretty damn good, but it’s not broken or bleeding, just red.  By tomorrow, it should be ok.”   
“Damn, that really hurt.”   
“Hell, I heard the thunk and it hurt me!”   
“Yeah, but you’ve said yourself that you have goblin feet.”   
“That doesn’t mean they don’t get hurt!” he told her, with mock offense.  “It just means I can pick things up with my toes.  And throw things.  And catch things.”

“Ew.  Freak.”   
Sean leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on her baby toe.

  
He sat and rubbed her feet for a few minutes, being careful around her hurt toe, and she leaned back against the headboard with a soft sigh and a smile.  When he was done, he inspected her little toe once again, manipulating it gently.  Riley let him know that it didn’t hurt as bad anymore.  He crawled up the bed, and she snuggled into his side in her favorite spot, her head on his heart.  He read to her softly from her book.  Just few pages in, he looked down at her, and she was sleeping soundly.  He tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and watched her sleep for a few minutes before switching off the bedside lamp.  Even though she was asleep, he whispered to her, “Love you so much, girl,” before closing his eyes and falling asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FYI - that thing Sean says about being able to pick up, catch, and throw things with his feet? Yeah, he told me that himself. He said his feet “have the dexterity of hands!!!” LOL!


	46. Chapter 46

Riley woke to an empty bed and the smell of bacon and eggs.  She got up and walked into the kitchen.  Sean was sitting at the table with bed head, a half finished breakfast on the plate in front of him, and a copy of the New York Times in his hand.  He looked up as she walked in and gave her a sweet boyish smile.  “Breakfast?”   
“I’m not looking a gift horse in the mouth,” Riley began, “but I know damn well you didn’t make this.”   
“Of course not.  I ordered it from some diner up the street.  I told them if they brought it here instead of me picking it up, even though it’s not policy, AND brought me a paper, I’d make it worth their while.  You were sleeping so good, I didn’t want to wake you so I could go get it, and I didn’t want to leave you again...I just wanted to do something nice for you.”   
Riley sat across from him and smiled.  “I have to admit, this is pretty damn nice.”   
Sean pulled her plate out of the microwave.  “I put it in there to keep it warm.  Was that the right thing?  Should I have put it in the oven?”   
He was so insecure about kitchen stuff.  “The microwave is perfect.  Small space, it will keep warm for a good while.”  She took a bite and informed him, “Yep it’s still nice and warm.”    
He got a cup out of the cabinet for her and made her coffee just the way she liked it.  At least he could make coffee.  He handed her the Lifestyle section of the paper and they sat quietly, then Sean started giggling.     
“What’s so funny?”   
“Nothing.”  *giggle snort*   
“What?  Did you fart or something?”   
“No!  It’s just….we look like some old married couple on Sunday morning.”   
  
Riley looked at them.  Both sitting at the table in their jammies, eating breakfast, noses buried in the paper, still sleepy with bedhead.   
“Or newlyweds on their honeymoon,” she said without thinking.  After she said it, her eyes shot to Sean’s.  She muttered, “Sorry, not thinking.”

“It’s ok, Ri.  I get it.  It’s too soon.”  Although he thought to himself,  _ ‘But someday…’ _

 

After they ate, Sean took the breakfast dishes and put them in the dishwasher, then sat back down to look at the paper again.  Riley walked over, took the paper out of his hand, and sat on his lap, straddling him.  Running her hands through his hair to try and tame his bed head, he smiled at her.  “My beautiful little Riley-girl.”

“When is your flight back?”

“Midnight.  I have to leave here by 9 p.m. at the latest.”   
Riley looked at the clock.  It was 9 a.m.  “12 hours?  So soon?”   
“Yeah.  I told you, baby, I only had 36 hours.” He pulled her close.  “I don’t want to leave.”  Tightening his arms around her, he felt her telltale shaking, and told her, “Honey, please don’t cry.  It breaks my heart when you do.”  He pulled back and looked at her just in time to see two fat tears roll down her cheeks.  He reached up and wiped them away, only to have them replaced immediately by two more.

“This isn’t fair!” she wailed.  “It’s just not!” She got off of his lap.  Sean was stunned at her outburst.  He’d been almost sad that she’d been so reasonable about everything, but it looked like she had bottled it all up, and the cork was about to go flying.  “I can’t keep doing this!  Can you?” she screamed.

“Baby, what are you talking about?” he asked.

“This!  Us!  How long am I supposed to be happy with seeing you for three days every two weeks?  This isn’t right!”   
Sean was worried.  She seemed to be really having a meltdown.  Honestly, it was a long time coming, and he was glad she wasn’t doing it when she was alone, but he would still have to leave tonight.  And she was still going to be there alone for a few more days.  He briefly wondered if coming to see her had been the right thing.  He tried to calm her.  “Babygirl, it’s ok.  It’s all gonna work out.  You’re gonna finish your book-”

“That doesn’t mean anything!  It may never get published!  And then what?  I’ll be in Senoia, and you’ll be in L.A. and it won’t be long before some young babe gets your attention and you tell me to fuck off!”   
“Ok, that’s enough of that, missy!” Sean was angry now.  “I really do not like what you’re insinuating about me, dammit!  You think I would just turn my back on you?”   
“You have before,” she said coldly.

“DAMMIT!” he shouted, pounding his hands on the counter so hard her made her jump.  “I am willing to spend the rest of my life making it up to you!  I am trying!  I came crawling back to you, Riley, begging for forgiveness on my damn knees!  What else can I possibly do?”

She turned her back and crossed her arms, refusing to respond.   
“Riley, you turn around and face me right NOW!  No shutting down, remember?”   
She didn’t move.  Sean decided enough was enough.  He walked up to her quickly, spun her around and threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.  

“Sean Flanery, you put me down!” she screamed at him, while her little fists beat uselessly on his back.   
He started down the hall to the bedroom and smacked on her ass, HARD, causing her to yelp in pain.  “You want to act like a little brat then I’ll treat you like one!”  He smacked her ass a few more times for good measure, then threw her down on the bed on her back.  She immediately tried to roll over and crawl off the bed, but he grabbed her by her ankle and dragged her back, then straddled her, holding her by her wrists as she flailed and fought him.

“God dammit, Riley!  What the fuck is wrong with you?”

Riley was in full panic/freak out mode for some reason, and showed no signs of calming down.

 

Sean put his face almost nose to nose with her and said in a low and scary voice, “Riley, don’t make me regret coming here.”

She froze when he said that.  Then Sean watched as her face crumpled and she dissolved into tears.   He let go of her wrists and climbed off of her, sitting on the bed and pulling her onto his lap.  “Okay, baby, okay,” he said gently as he stroked her hair.  Riley was letting loose with absolutely gut-wrenching sobs.  Sean just let her cry as he held her and rocked her on his lap.  “It’s going to be ok, Riley.  Baby, please try to calm down, you’re going to make yourself sick.”     
It took 30 minutes before Riley was able to calm down.  She was still crying, but at least she was able to talk now.

 

Sean wiped more of her tears away.  “You want to tell me what the hell that was all about?”   
Riley sniffled miserably.  “Not really, no.”   
“Riley…”

“Okay, okay.” 

Riley took a deep breath and told him the truth: she was terrified.  She had everything riding on this book, her whole future was dependent on it.  “I know I shouldn’t put all my eggs in one basket and all, but I did.  I need to leave Norman’s soon so he can be with Lisa.  Normally, I’d be fine with just going back to the trailer park and working back at Bailey’s or even just being a checker in the grocery store or something.  But there’s a big variable now.”   
“Me.”   
“Yeah.  Sean, I don’t want to be apart from you.  You said it kills you, well it kills me too.  But I can’t just pull up stakes and move in with you and let you take care of me.  I was so sure that everything would be fine once I finished the book.  But now that I kind of am….” she trailed off.   
“You’re scared to death.”  It was a statement, not a question, and Riley nodded.   
“What if I did all that for nothing?  What if I relived it all again for no reason?”   
Sean sighed.  “It’s not for nothing, baby.  Ghia keeps asking me when she can read more.  She’s really interested.  And I meant what I said yesterday.  I would give up everything to be with you. If that meant moving to Senoia and quitting acting I would.  Hell, I could still go back to L.A. for auditions if I needed to.  Maybe I could get a part on The Walking Dead with Norman!  You are what’s important to me, Riley.  But like you said, one thing at a time, book first.  Get it finished and email me a copy.  I can forward it to Ghia.  After that, we can figure out our next move.  But you need to quit with the tantrums and shit, girl.  I’m serious.”

Riley lowered her head.  She was ashamed of how she acted.

Sean continued, “I get it that you are a little overwhelmed.  I get that you’ve been bottling shit up for the past 5 weeks to deal.  You need to quit it.  You can’t keep exploding like that, then shutting down.  You can’t keep acting like that because it’s not fair that I bear the brunt of it.”   
“I’m sorry.  I know it wasn’t fair.”   
He continued to hold her quietly and she spoke again.  “You spanked me.  It hurt.”   
“I know and I’m sorry.  Believe me, hurting you is not something I enjoy.  I was trying to snap you out of your hysterics.  I was afraid I might have to slap you in the face, and I really didn’t want to do that.  We need to communicate, remember?  No shutting down, remember?”   
Riley just looked at the ground and nodded, ashamed of herself.

“And again,” Sean continued.  “No more tantrums.  You completely overreacted.  You could have spoken to me calmly, but you freaked out instead.  You can’t keep having outbursts like that.  Maybe you need to see your therapist for a bit longer.  Just to get a handle on that.”   
“Ok,” Riley said miserably.

Sean assured her that there was nothing wrong with going to therapy for a bit longer.  She was almost at the point where they were going to stop her visits altogether.  But she knew he was right.  She needed to stop freaking out on him. It wasn’t fair.  They had so little time together, they didn’t need to spend it on her having meltdowns.   
“I’m sorry, Sean.  I’ll talk to my doctor again.  I’ll be good.”   
That last sentence broke his heart.  When she had stayed with him and he went to the store and she thought he’d abandoned her, she’d sworn up and down to Norman and Lisa that she had been “good”.  As if he would leave her as punishment.  “Baby, you ARE good.  You always have been.  Believe me, you aren’t in danger of me leaving you.  You just need to get a little help for these outbursts.  But I’m not going anywhere.  You’re still my pretty girl.  I still love you.”

Riley knew she was lucky.  He was really being understanding.

Sean just held her on his lap.  The explosions she was having needed to stop, but he meant it when he said he wasn’t about to leave her.  Riley had been through more than people knew.  She hadn’t had many relationships, but the few she’d had had been downright dysfunctional, even cruel.  Everything from verbal abuse to cheating to gaslighting her and making her think she was crazy.  She’d stayed in them much longer than she should have, as she didn’t have anything to gauge them by.  She thought that was just the way it was.  That if she was “good”, the bad things would stop.  He wanted to make sure she never felt that way again.  

“I love you so much, Ri.  I’m not leaving you unless you tell me too.”   
“Well then you may just be around forever.”   
“That’s fine with me, babygirl.  Sounds perfect.”

 

Riley raised her head and smiled at him.  Sean would do anything to keep her smiling like that.  He gently pulled her face to his and kissed her softly.  Glancing at the clock, he told her, “11 hours left.  Let’s make the most of it, ok?”   
“Sounds good.”   
He laid her back on the bed and started kissing down her neck gently, eliciting a sigh from those soft pink lips of hers.  Sean’s southern accent made itself known, as he whispered, “Gonna make you feel so good, darlin’.”   
He pulled her little tank top off and enjoyed the feeling of her hard nipples against his chest.  Riley ran her hands up his back, loving the feel of the muscles there.  “Love you so much, Sean.” 

“I love you too, Riley,” he mumbled against her neck as his lips started to travel back down.  Getting to her chest, he circled his tongue slowly around one nipple before sucking it into his mouth, gently pulling on it.   
“Oh god!” Riley gasped, arching her back.

Sean let her nipple slide slowly from his mouth, then repeated the process on her other nipple.  He reached down between her legs and could feel her wetness seeping right through her sleep shorts - she wasn’t wearing any panties under them.  “I can feel how ready you are already baby.  But I’m gonna mark you up a bit.  So you remember that you’re mine.”  He sucked on the underside of her breast and then the other while using his fingers to keep the nipples hard, his blue eyes watching her intently.  

He left another mark at the halfway point between her breasts and belly button, and then one more between her belly button and pussy.  That one nearly did him in, as he could smell her, and feel her wetness.

 

Sean finally pulled her shorts off, and she was soaked.  “Please, Sean, please,” she begged.  “Easy babygirl,” he responded.

Finally he dipped his head between her legs, slowly running his tongue up her slit, the best taste in the world.  Riley laced her fingers through his hair and gently pulled his head closer.  He pushed his tongue deep inside of her, and started moving it up and down, and Riley tightened her hands in his hair.  He wrapped one muscular arm around her thighs, and used two fingers in an inverted V shape to spread her open, exposing her clit.  He barely flicked it with his tongue, sending shock waves of pleasure through Riley.  He marveled at how something so tiny could make a woman feel so good.  He pressed just the very tip of his tongue against it rapidly, like a snake.  Riley bucked up against him, desperate for more.  He slid his fingers down, gently catching her hot little button between them.  He started sucking on it softly, while using his  fingers to rhythmically squeeze it.

Riley was practically grinding his face against her, not that he minded.  “Just like that….right there...don’t stop…make me cum….” she breathed. 

Sean hummed as a reply, and that was all it took.  He held on to her tightly as she began to buck beneath him.   
“SEAN!  Oh god, OH GOD! DON’T STOP...don’t ever stop...please don’t stop…” her cries died out into moans and unintelligible cries and curses.  Sean lapped up every drop that dribbled out of her.  When her bucking died down and her thighs stopped shaking, Sean slowed then stopped his tongue, and gently released her clit from between his fingers.  He looked up at her.  His beautiful Riley, covered with a thin sheen of sweat, eyes closed, panting and trying to catch her breath.  She reached down for him blindly, and he slid up her body.  Holding his weight off of her on his elbows, he gently stroked her face. “You ok, babygirl?”   
Slowly Riley opened her eyes and gave him a small smile.  “I love you, Sean.”

“I love you too, Riley.  So damn much.”


	47. Chapter 47

Without another word, Sean slid his hard cock into her, feeling the final twitches of her orgasm.  Riley took his face in her hands and pulled him in for a kiss.  Neither of them said a word...they didn’t have to.  He laced his fingers with hers and thrust into her at a steady pace.  Riley started raising her hips to meet his.  He whispered, “You close, angel?”   
“Yeah.”   
“Ok.”

He sped up, thrusting harder, making Riley moan.  He buried his face in her neck, closing his eyes to the world.  Nothing else mattered except his angel.  She was everything.

He felt her clench around him, and brought his head up to watch her.  Her back arched, her head was thrown back, she made a few sharp gasps, and finally managed to choke out, “OH...GOD…YES!!!”  Sean felt her liquid start to dribble out and locked eyes with her as he shot into her, unable to say anything more than her name, “Riley…..Riley!”     
He collapsed on top of her and wept.

Running her hands through his hair, she tried to calm him.  “Sean, it’s ok.  Everything is ok.  What’s going on?”   
He muttered into her neck but she couldn’t understand him.     
“What?  I can’t hear you.”   
He raised his head, a mess of tears, and told her, “I’m not going back.  Fuck that movie.  Fuck everything.  I’m staying with you.”

Riley couldn’t believe her ears.  “NO!  Absolutely not!”   
“Why not?  We’re both miserable!”   
“Because I’m not going to be the Yoko Ono in this.  You are not going to ruin your good, hard working reputation on a piece of ass.”

Sean rolled off of her and laid on his side looking at her.  “You’re not a piece of ass, Riley!  You’re the woman I love!”   
“To anybody else, it’s still just a piece of ass.  Sean, you made a commitment to do this movie-”

“What about the commitment I made to you?  I’m your boyfriend and I’m never fucking there for you!”   
“Sean, don’t do this.  You’re almost done, you said so yourself.  Look, I thought our week together would make us or break us.  But being apart for almost 5 weeks?  That’s been the REAL challenge.  Don’t tarnish your reputation over me.  I’ll be the one who gets blamed.”

Sean knew she was right.  He could tell the media it was all on him, but they’d make her a scapegoat.  And if that happened, it could actually hurt things when her book got published.  He looked at her sweet face, pleading with him.  He pulled her close.  “This is killing me, angel.”   
“It’s not a picnic for me, either.”   
“Finish the book, baby.  Please.  And hurry.  The sooner it gets out there, the sooner it becomes a bestseller, the sooner you can come live with me and support my deadbeat ass.”   
Riley giggled at that, and couldn’t stop.  The idea of Sean, with the strongest work ethic she knew, being a deadbeat was just too funny.  Pretty soon, Sean started giggling too, and within minutes they were absolutely rolling with laughter.  They were clutching their stomachs with tears rolling down their cheeks.  And it felt GOOD.

When they calmed down, Riley made him promise that he would go back to work as planned and finish the movie.  “You told me yourself that you lobbied really hard for this role.  Don’t mess everything up.  You know I’m right on this.”   
She was and he knew it.  “When do you think you’ll be finished with the book?”   
She smiled at him.  “Tomorrow.”   
He sat up and exclaimed, “What?  Are you serious?  Really?”   
“Yeah.  I just need to put some finishing touches on the last chapter.  I’ll email it to you as soon as it’s done.  After you read it, you can write your foreword.”

“I am so proud of you, babygirl.”   
  


Riley’s phone rang.  It was Norman checking in.  “Guess who’s here with me, boss?”   
“Somebody else is in my fucking house?” he didn’t like the idea of someone being there without his permission.   
“Yep.  Sean!”   
“Oh, him.  What’s that bum doing there?” Sean was totally different.  Hell, he’d stayed there without Norman a few times when he was filming.  Norman’s only rule was no guests.

Riley handed her phone to Sean so he could tell Norman the whole story.  He confirmed that he would be coming for at least a couple of days to spend with Riley when he was done.  He gave the phone back to Riley, and she let Norman know about being almost done with the book, and he was like a proud papa when he heard that.  She let him know she would most likely get it to him before she left.  Ending the phone call, she curled back up next to Sean.

“When everything is taken care of, I’ll bring you back to New York for a vacation, a REAL vacation,” he told her.   
“Really?”  When she came with Norman, she had stayed close to home.  Only venturing out when necessary.  And she wasn’t interested in going by herself now.   
“Yeah,” he promised.  “We’ll stay at the Ritz-Carlton, like fancy people.  We’ll go see the Statue of Liberty, and Central Park, and Times Square, and go see a Broadway Show.  How does that sound?”   
The way Riley’s face lit up, you’d have thought she won the lottery.  “Really?”   
“Definitely.  And once you move in with me-” she gave him a look but he held up his hand. “Not pushing at all, but when you do, maybe we can get season tickets to Disney.  Would you like that?”   
“No, those are too expensive.  But could we maybe go twice a year?”   
“Anything you want, angel.  But make me a promise.”   
“Sure.”   
“Talk to your therapist when you get home.  We can’t gloss over that.  You need help that I can’t give you.”   
“Okay,” Riley pouted.  She knew he was right.

 

They spent the next several hours basically fucking each others brains out.  The couch, the floor, the shower, the bed.

It finally got dark out, and Sean had an hour before he had to leave.  Riley was standing at the plate glass window in the living room with the lights off, looking at all the lights of the city.  Sean walked in after packing his small bag.  When he’d stayed at the penthouse alone, he’d done the same thing: shut off all the lights and watched the city.  She was wearing a little short nightie, her beautiful legs bare.  Sean pulled his phone out and silently snapped a picture.  He walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her.  He sighed and said, “I don’t think we should let Norman know we fucked on his living room couch.”   
Riley chuckled and said, “Probably not, although he told me he’s fucked three different models on it.”

“Ewww.”

“Oh like you wouldn’t given half the chance?”   
“Not anymore I wouldn’t.  Not since I met you.”

Riley’s heart melted when he said that.  He kissed the top of her head. “Already miss you, little girl, and you’re right here.”

Riley laced her fingers through his where they rested around her waist.  “I know.  But you’ll see me again soon.”   
“Not soon enough.”

They were quiet for a few minutes, then Sean asked, “Are your ladybits sore?”   
Riley could hear the smile in his voice.  “No…”

 

Sean took her hands and pressed them flat against the glass, whispering hotly in her ear, “Don’t take your hands off that glass.”

He grabbed her hips and walked her backward a bit, so she was bent over.  Pushing up the bottom of her nightie, he slid her panties off slowly, then pushed her legs apart.  Kneeling down behind her, he kissed along the junction of her ass and thighs, then dipped his head down and ran his wet tongue along her labia.  Riley moaned and pushed her ass out even farther.  “That’s my dirty girl,” Sean whispered before plunging his tongue inside of her as deeply as he could.  He continued lapping at her for a few minutes, impressed with the way she kept her hands pressed to the glass.  He stood and she whimpered, “No, please don’t stop.”   
“Don’t worry, angel.  Gonna make you scream my name one more time before I go.”

He undid his pants and pulled them down just enough to pull his dick out.  He rubbed the tip along her wetness, teasing her, and she tried to push back and force him inside of her.  Sean gave her ass a few smacks, telling her, “Bad girl!” as Riley moaned in frustration.  He suddenly slammed into her, all at once, making her knees buckle. Sean grabbed her around the waist quickly.  “I’ve got you, baby,” he whispered.  “I’ve always got you.”   
Riley got her legs back under control as Sean started to move in and out of her.  Her hands started to slide on the glass.  Sean wrapped his arms around her middle and lifted her up, with his cock still buried inside of her, and carried her over to the back of the couch and bent her over it.  Looking over her shoulder, Riley asked, “Am I allowed to push back?”   
Sean groaned out, “Fuck yes.”

Riley braced her hands on the back of the couch and thrust herself back on Sean’s unit.  He grabbed her hips so hard he knew he would leave bruises, and he didn’t care.   She was his.  “You belong to me, little girl, you’re mine,” he grunted out.  “All yours,” Riley panted in agreement.

Sean pulled out of her and spun her around.  “I want to see that beautiful face when you cum,” he told her as he sat her on the back of the couch and buried himself in her again, arms around her so she wouldn’t lose her balance.

Sean was nose to nose with Riley and he stilled himself deeply inside of her.  Riley could see in his blue eyes that he was distressed.  Sean saw the concern on her face and simply said, “What are you doing to me, girl?  Never felt like this before.  What are you doing to me?”  He began thrusting into her again.

Riley wrapped her legs tightly around his waist.  She couldn’t answer him because she didn’t understand it, and she felt it too.  She just said, “Tell me you love me, Sean.”   
“I do, babygirl.  I love you so much.  So much it hurts.”  He started raining kisses all over her face.  “So much, Riley.  It makes me crazy.”   
Riley was close, her could feel her starting to flutter and her legs started to shake.  “Cum for me, Riley, show me you love me.”  With that,  Riley’s back arched and her legs tightened around his waist.  She let out a long, low, emotional cry, and Sean pulled her tightly against him.  “It’s ok, angel.  It’s gonna be ok.”  She wrapped her arms around him for a moment, then pushed him gently away, making his still hard cock fall out of her.  Before Sean could react, she was on her knees, and he was in her mouth, big eyes turned up to him.  “Oh, Riley, OH RILEY!” was all he could manage as he unloaded in her seconds later.  He slumped against the back of the couch as she stood.  He just watched her as she tucked his soft dick back into his pants and fastened them, then straightened his shirt and fixed his hair lovingly.  “Now you look presentable,” she said softly, avoiding his eyes.   
“Riley,” he said gently.  “Look at me.”

“No.”   
“Why not?”   
“Because now I want you to stay and I know you can’t.  Now I know how you felt.”

Sean pulled her close.  Suddenly his cell alarm went off.  He had to leave.  “I have to go, princess.”   
Riley nodded and let go.  He took her hand and walked over to the door, pulling her close once again and kissing her goodbye.  She asked, “Are you sure you don’t want me to ride to the airport with you?  Wait by the security line?”   
“No.  It’s 45 minutes each way.  And I don’t trust a cab driver alone with you, to be honest.”   
“I took a cab here from the airport, and I’m taking one back, too.”   
“I know.  Believe me, I don’t like it.  And yes I know I’m being ridiculous.”

RIley hugged him so hard, she didn’t want to let go.  “Text me when you get there.  And again when you land.  And again when you get back to the house.”  He and a couple of the guys in the movie were subletting a small house instead of living in a hotel.  “I know I’ll be asleep, but I’ll see it when I wake up.”   
“I promise.”  He turned to leave.  “I’ll see you soon, princess.   I love you.”   
“I love you, too.”

He closed the door behind him.

 

Riley ran out to the large deck and looked over the edge.  She saw him getting in a cab and called out to him, but he couldn't hear her over the noise of the city.  She watched the yellow cab drive away until she lost it in the sea of cabs driving down the street.

  
He was gone.


	48. Chapter 48

Riley walked aimlessly around the penthouse for a few minutes, unsure of what to do with herself.  She turned the TV on, just for some company.  It was too quiet.  Wandering into the bedroom, she found one of Sean’s shirts laid out on the bed with a little note that said, “Something to help you sleep at night.  P.S. I stole your pillowcase again.”  Sure enough, one of her pillowcases was missing.  That adorable bastard.  She took off her nightie and put on Sean’s shirt, breathing in his scent.

Wandering back into the living room, she decided to surf the net.  No work tonight.  She looked at Sean’s Instagram.  He had posted a selfie from the backseat of his cab.  He looked miserable and had captioned it, “Leaving the Big Apple...and my Georgia peach.  See you soon, Ri.  xoxo”  Riley smiled sadly.  She logged into her account.  Nobody knew she even had one, she used a fake name, and commented, “I bet she misses you, too.”

With the way she worded it, she wasn’t worried about others seeing it.  Some fans had said similar stuff.

Her phone pinged with a text from Sean.  “Should you have done that?”   
“Sure.  Looks like the same stuff other fans have said.  The house is too quiet without you here.”   
“Aw, really?”   
“Yeah.  You snore like a freight train.”

Sean laughed out loud at that text as he walked into the airport.  As he finished going through security, his phone pinged with a pic.  Riley lying in bed in his shirt, hair splayed out around her like a halo, making a kissy face.  Then a text, “Going to bed, try to get some sleep on the plane.  Remember, text when you land and when you get to the house.  I love you.”

Sean’s heart just melted.  He still had another week on this damn movie.  He had lobbied tirelessly for this part, he had never wanted anything so badly….except now.  Now he wanted nothing more than to go back out of that airport, get in a cab, and go home to Riley.  Home.  That wasn’t even his home...but wherever she was felt like home to him.     
Riley went to bed after sending Sean the last text.  She needed to finish the book tomorrow.

 

The next day, Riley was up bright and early.  She checked her phone.  A text from Sean letting her know the plane had landed safely, and then another a while later letting her know he was home.  And then a pic of him laying in bed making a kissy face, mimicking hers, captioned, “Goodnight, my love.”  D’awww!  She sent him a simple text saying, “Monday.  I’m ok.”  Sean saw that as soon as she sent it, and knew she was back into working mode.

 

Riley had some breakfast and a shower and sat down with her laptop.  She typed for several hours, stopping only to pee.  Finally she sat back, looking at the screen.  She was done.  She had finished.  It was long, 375 pages, but it was all there.  Looking up, she realized it was already after 6, and she hadn’t eaten since breakfast.  She got up and heated up some leftovers and ate, then called Norman.

“Hey, Ri!” he answered.  “How’s the book coming?”

“I’m finished.”   
“What?  Really?”

Riley heard the excitement in his voice.  “It’s true, boss.  I’m done.”

“So now what happens?”   
“I’ll email a copy to you, and to Sean, and Sean will forward a copy to Ghia.  You slackers need to read it so you can write your forewords, in case you want to touch on anything I said or clarify anything.  After that, I guess I start sending it to publishers.”   
“I’m real proud of you, Ri.  Me and Lisa both.  And Sean is, too.  I’m glad he was able to come by and see you.”   
“Me, too.  Even though I kinda had a meltdown.”   
“Oh shit, really?”   
“Yeah.  I think I may need to see my therapist for a bit longer.  Just figure out what’s going on.”   
“I think that’s a good idea.”   
“Norm, if I can change my ticket, would you be okay with me coming home tomorrow instead of Wednesday?  Now that I’m done, I don’t see a reason to stay.”   
“Riley, you don’t have to ask to come home.  Just let me know and I’ll arrange for someone to come get you if I can’t.”

 

Riley ended the call and sent emails to both Sean and Norman with the book attached, warning them, “It’s 375 pages!  Get to reading!”  Then texted Sean saying, “All done, book emailed to you, ok to forward to Ghia.  Going to see about changing my ticket to go home tomorrow.”

She checked with the airline, and was able to get an 8 pm flight the next day.  She let Norman know, and he replied that he would pick her up outside, like their usual routine.  An hour later, Riley was watching some TV, and her Facetime pinged from Sean.     
“Hey babygirl!  I got your book, I’ll forward it to Ghia in the morning.  I am so proud of you!”   
“I can’t believe I finished it!  It’s really long, though.”   
“Baby, it’s fine.  It needs to be that long to get the whole story out.  I can’t wait to read it.”   
“Just remember that you don’t look very good in parts of it…”   
“Well, I acted like an asshole.  So what are you gonna do until you go home? Just hang out?”   
“No, I actually changed my flight to tomorrow at 8 pm.  No reason for me to stay here any longer, really.”   
“So what time are you leaving tomorrow?”   
“I’ll go catch a cab about 5.  Gotta clean up tomorrow and do laundry and stuff.”   
Someone started calling for Sean, and he told her, “Gotta get back to the grind, beautiful.  I’ll talk to you soon.  I love you.”   
“I love you, too.”   
Riley went back to watching TV and thinking nothing of it.  But Sean was hatching a little plan.  He’d told her he didn’t like her being in a cab…..

 

The next day, Riley busied herself with straightening up the penthouse.  She washed and put away the linens she’d used, sans the pillowcase Sean had stolen.  She made sure any leftovers in the fridge went down the garbage chute, along with any other trash.  They didn’t need to come back to the penthouse in a few months to find a science project growing in the fridge.  She swept and vacuumed, and made sure all the windows were closed.  Just before 5 pm, she locked up the penthouse and headed downstairs to hail a cab.  Walking out of the elevator and into the lobby of the building, she saw a limousine parked at the curb with a driver standing at attention.  As she walked out the front door, the driver asked, “Miss Maxwell?”  Riley was a little bit stunned and managed to stammer out, “Y-yes…”  The driver smiled, opened the door to the backseat, and said, “I’m your driver, David.  I have instructions to deliver you safely to the airport.”   
Riley stood there dumbly.  She had never been in a limo in her life.  How much did those things cost?  “Um, I don’t understand.”   
The driver pulled out his cell phone, and read, “I have instructions from a Mr. Flanery to deliver you, Miss Riley Maxwell, to John F. Kennedy International Airport.”  He showed her a picture Sean had sent.  “He sent me this picture so I would recognize you, miss.”   
“Could you give me one second please?”

“Of course.”   
She walked a few steps away and called Sean.  Luckily, he was on a break and answered.   
“Did you send a limo to take me to the airport?”   
“Sure did, angel.  Driver’s name is David.  Is he there?”   
“Yes.  But why?”   
“Told you I didn’t like the idea of you in a cab.”   
“Dammit, Sean.  I’ve never been in a limo,” she started to sniffle.   
“Now you have, baby.  Are you crying?  Don’t cry!  I just wanted to do something nice.”   
“It IS nice.  I can’t believe you.  First class flights and now a limo…”   
“You deserve it, Riley.  Look, I have to go, they’re calling for me.  You gonna be ok?”   
“Yeah.”   
“I love you, angel.”   
“I love you, too.”   
  
Riley turned back to the driver who was waiting patiently.  “Are you ready, miss?”   
“I guess so.  I’ve never been in a limo before.  Never in my life.”   
“Well you climb in, sit back and relax.  That’s what it’s all about.”

He took her suitcase and opened the door for her.  She climbed in and sat down, looking around.  Her put her suitcase in the trunk and got into the front seat.  Riley started pushing all the buttons on the console back there and the driver chuckled.  He usually drove stuffy businessmen, it was nice to see someone excited to ride in a limo.  

Once she’d pushed all the buttons to her heart’s content, she started opening the cabinets and drawers, and found a bar.  “Excuse me,” she called up to the David.  “There’s a minibar back here, but there are no prices like at the hotels.  How much is a can of the Diet Coke?”   
“It’s free, miss.  Everything in here is included.  You can help yourself to anything to drink and any of the snacks.”   
“Wow!”    
The driver just chuckled again.  She really was a breath of fresh air.

 

Riley helped herself to a Diet Coke and a bag of peanut M&M’s.  So this was how rich people travelled….it was pretty nice.  Not the way she would normally go, though.  She missed Herbie.  Riley had always been a simple girl who liked simple things.  She loved that Sean spoiled her a little with first class flights, but she also loved that he was just like her: a simple guy with simple pleasures.  He had told her once that he hated taking a limo to premieres - he would rather drive his own car so he could leave whenever he damn well pleased, and not have to wait 30 minutes for the limo to come from wherever they were hanging out.   “I mean they’re nice and all,” he told her, “and good if you’ve had a few drinks.  But I’d rather not drink and just take my own car.”

 

When they got to the airport, the driver got Riley’s suitcase out and gave it to the skycap.  Riley tried to tip David, but he refused, telling her, “Mr. Flanery took care of everything.”  Riley smiled and held her hand out for him to shake.  He seemed shocked but shook her hand, and she told him, “Thank you for taking such good care of me, David.”     
He smiled at her.  “It was a pleasure, Miss Maxwell.”  He tipped his hat, got back in the limo, and left.  Riley went into the airport, went through security, and checked into her gate, then sat reading a book until boarding.  

 

She flew business class both ways.  Coach was too hard on her back, but first class was too expensive for a 2 hour flight.  She sat on the plane looking out the window and fingering her pendant.  She had promised Sean she would never take it off.  She hadn’t, and had no plans to.  Smiling, she pulled out her phone and shot him a text.  “Thanks for the limo, my first time.  Too bad you weren’t there, we could have tested the shocks.  ;) “

 

Sean saw her text a few minutes later and laughed. He wouldn’t have minded banging her in that limo all the way to the airport, then joining the “mile high club”.  Or fucking her up on Mulholland...again.  Anything for her, anywhere she was.  

He headed home after a long day of shooting, took a shower and ate, and climbed into bed with his iPad.  He wanted to pick up reading her book from what she had let him see before.  Just at least get a few pages in before turning in for the night.  Three hours later, his eyes were burning from being open for so long.  He felt like he couldn’t stop reading.  He immediately forwarded it to Ghia instead of waiting until morning.  His email read:   
“Ghia, 

Here’s my girlfriend Riley’s book - the one you’ve been asking to read more of.  If you don’t publish this, you’re insane.  I’ve just been up for three hours reading, on the edge of my seat the entire time...and I know how it goes, I was there.  I will put up my own cash to self publish this for her if you won’t.   
  
Sincerely,

Sean Patrick Flanery”


	49. Chapter 49

Riley landed in Atlanta and after collecting her luggage, texted Norman.  As always, he was hiding in a parking lot nearby, and swooped in to get her.  On the way home, he told her, “Been reading the book.  It’s damn good, Ri.  I’m almost done with it.”   
“Already?”   
“What can I say?  It’s a page turner.  And you were totally honest about everything.  I gotta tell you sweetie, I cried when you talked about being in the barn with Kevin.  It broke my fucking heart,” he told her, his voice cracking.

“Aw Norm.  You guys were looking for me.  You had no idea.”   
“I screamed when they brought you out of that barn, Ri.  I screamed and cried.  They had you strapped to a board with a neck brace on you.  They had you stuck with IV’s and an oxygen mask.  All I could think was that I was about to lose my best friend.  I screamed and cried.”

Riley looked at him.  “You never told me that.”   
“When we got to the hospital, they said you had already flatlined twice and they brought you back both times.  And they said you’d named me as next-of-kin.  I was so scared that you wouldn’t wake up.  I kept talking to you...but you know that,” he said with a small smile.   
“Yep, you told me show secrets.”   
“I kept hoping you’d wake up and accuse me of bullshitting you.”

Riley was quiet, then said, “Have I ever thanked you?”   
“For what?”   
“For everything.”   
Norman pulled into their driveway, turned off the engine, and turned in his seat to look at her.  “Riley, just seeing you as happy as you are now is thanks enough.  Man, you are the toughest chick I know.  Biker chicks got nothing on you, girl.”   
He got out and carried her suitcase inside.  Letting her know he had an early set time in the morning, he hugged her and headed to bed.  She went into her room, and decided to unpack in the morning, except for one thing.  She rummaged through her things and found Sean’s shirt.   Putting it on, she slid under the covers and fell asleep quickly.

 

Riley woke to her cell ringing with Sean’s ringtone, “Burning Love” by Elvis, of course.  He put it on there himself.  She reached blindly for it, mumbling, “Mornin’ baby.”   
He could hear the sleep in her voice.  “Sorry sweetheart, I know I woke you, but this is important.”   
“Oh?” she mumbled, still half asleep.   
Sean smiled.  He was about to really wake her up.  “Sent Ghia a copy of the book last night.  She was up all night reading it.”   
“Mmhmm….”   
“She wants to meet you.  Baby,” he took a breath, “she wants to publish it.”

“That’s nice...”  Riley’s eyes snapped open.  “Wait.  WHAT?”

Sean started laughing.  “Knew that would wake you up!”   
“Sean, are you fucking with me?”   
“No, babygirl.  I just got off the phone with her.  She loves it.  She said it made her cry and everything.  She wants to come to Senoia to meet you!  This is it, baby!”   
“Wait...I don’t...how…when?”   
Sean chuckled.  “She wants to come on Sunday.  I’ll be there with you.  Unless you want to meet her alone.  Totally up to you.”   
“No, I want you with me!  Shit!  I can’t believe it!”  Riley was shaking and something dawned on her.  “Sean, I need to ask you something and I need you to tell me the truth.  I’m talking hand to god here.”   
“Okay.”   
“Did you have anything to do with this?  I mean did you bribe her or something?”   
“I’m a little offended at that, but no, I didn’t.”   
“I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean anything by it.  I just never thought that a publisher would REALLY like it.  I hoped, but deep down…..I didn’t want to be too disappointed, I guess.”   
“I told her if they didn’t publish it, they were crazy, and that I would put up my own money to publish it myself if they didn’t.  But they want it, babygirl.  They really want it.  It’s that good.  I knew they would.  I am so fucking proud of you.”   
Riley started to cry.  “Oh wow.  I should clean the house!” she cried jumping out of bed.  “Oh fuck, I wonder if Norman would be ok with her coming here?  Oh shit, I need to find something to wear!  I should call the salon and get my hair done, I need to make a good impression!”

Sean tried to calm her down.  “Baby, stop!  It’s not until Sunday!  And I already told her we would have to meet her somewhere besides home since Norman is so private.  And anything you wear will be fine.  You’ve already made an amazing impression on her.  She wants to call you this afternoon.  Is that okay?  Can I give her your number?  We can even meet her at the diner if you want.”   
Riley’s mind was going a mile a minute.  “Yeah, okay.  I’m sorry I know I’m freaking out.  I have to see my therapist tomorrow, so that’s a good thing.  I need to call Norman and let him know.   Shit, I’m shaking!”

“Angel, calm down, call Norman, and I’ll have Ghia call at say 4:00 this afternoon.  Does that work?”   
“Yeah.  I can’t believe this is happening!”    
“It is, and it’s all because of you.  I’m real proud of you, Ri.  I love you so much!  I gotta get back to work if I want to get out of here on schedule and get there on Friday night.  I’ll talk to you later, ok baby?  Call up Norman when you get off the phone with me.”   
“I will, Seanie.  I love you, too!”

 

Riley ended the call and sat on the bed in her pajamas.  She was shaking all over.  This was really happening!  She called Norman, and it went to voicemail, no surprise.  She left him a message.  “Call me back a.s.a.p.!  I’M GETTING PUBLISHED!!!”

He called back in minutes, and she recounted everything Sean had told her.  “Ghia’s going to call me this afternoon!  I can’t believe this is happening!”

She heard Norm yell out, “Riley’s book is gonna be published, you guys!” and could hear cast and crew members cheering.

He got back on the line.  “Man, I can’t believe it!  This is it, Ri, what you’ve been waiting for!  I’m so proud of you!  I told you it was a great book!  I’m gonna finish it tonight.  Do you still want me to write a foreword?”   
“Yes, definitely!”

 

They ended the call and Riley had some breakfast and a shower.  She started in on her daily chores.  It was hard for her to concentrate, but she kept reminding herself that she had a job to do.  At least until 4 o’clock.  She tried to keep her doubts at bay.  What if Ghia didn’t like her?  What if she didn’t like Ghia?  What if this was all a mistake?  What if what if what if….

 

At 4 pm on the dot, Riley’s phone rang.  Her hands shaking and sweating, she sat down on the couch to answer.   
“Hello?”   
“Hello, could I please speak to Riley Maxwell?”   
“This is her.”   
“Hello, Riley, I’m Ghia.  Did Sean let you know I would call?  Is this a good time to talk?”

Riley liked her friendly voice and found herself relaxing.

They talked for an hour.  Ghia confirmed that yes, they wanted to publish her book, they thought it would do well.  “I won’t lie to you,” Ghia told her.  “Your book could be very big.  It’s a true story, and an incredible one at that.  And it was made public somewhat, but Norman and Sean refused to comment.  I’m assuming they did that out of respect for you, which is awesome.”   
“It was.  I wanted them both to write forewords for the book.”   
“I think that would be great!  Get a bit of their feelings on what happened, they obviously both care deeply for you…..in different ways.”

Riley giggled, “MUCH differently.”

They made plans to meet in the afternoon at the diner in Senoia on Sunday, Riley giving her directions.  “I look forward to meeting you, Riley.  You seem like an amazing woman.”   
“I’m not amazing,” Riley said.  “I’m just….me.”

 

Norman got home not long after she got off the phone.  He walked in with a bottle of champagne.  Picking her up in a huge hug, he said, “I know I keep saying it, but it’s true.  I’m so fucking proud of you!”

Riley was still in a little bit of shock over the whole thing.  Norman opened the champagne and they toasted her future success.  She was scared and happy and excited all at once, thinking she would wake at any moment and it would all be a dream.

 

The next day, as scheduled, Riley went to see her therapist.  She told her about her outbursts and also about the book being published.  Her doctor pointed out the obvious: the book was the biggest stressor in her life.  She had so much riding on it, and she had relived the attacks to get it done, so it was seeping over into everything else.  “Let me ask you this,” the doctor said.  “If you hadn’t written this book, would you have moved in with Sean?”   
That question stopped Riley dead in her tracks.  She thought for a moment, then slowly answered, “Yeah, I eventually would have.  Even if I had a crap job in retail or something.  I would have to work, he wants to take care of me financially, but I don’t want that.  But I love him.  I love him a lot.  I’ve always been independent and took care of myself.  I guess I’m just not used to having someone else involved.  All of my relationships have been shitty, but this one isn’t.  It’s almost like I don’t know how to function when someone is treating me well!  But….I’m learning.  And I kind of like it.”

The therapist told Riley that she really didn’t think she needed to see her anymore.  “The book is written, it’s getting picked up, that’s one less thing to worry about.  Just see where it goes.  You told me once yourself: it may be a bestseller, or it may not sell one copy.  But regardless, I think you will have to make a decision about Sean.  He seems to care for you very much.  When everything settles down, you need to decide.”   
  
Riley drove home and thought it over.  She wanted to be with Sean.  But it would have to wait until things with the book got settled.  Like she had told him: book first, everything else later.  

 

She busied herself the next few days as best she could, and both Norman and Sean worked on their forewords.  Sean’s movie wrapped on Thursday afternoon, and he let Riley know that his flight would be landing in Atlanta on Friday at 9 pm, that he was sorry, it was the earliest he could get.  Riley promised to meet him at the luggage carousel.  Norman was going to go to Lisa’s until Sunday morning and give them the privacy they needed.  Sean was going to stay until Wednesday.  He knew she would have to work during the day, but he wanted to be near her for a little longer, and Norman told him that was fine.  Those two were crazy about each other.

 

Norman had Friday off, they didn’t need to shoot him that day.  Riley was in the shower in the afternoon when there was a knock on the door.  Norman answered it and there stood Sean.  Norm pulled him into a hug.  “Hey, good to see you!  Thought you weren’t landing until tonight?”   
“I went to the airport and got on standby.  I was hoping I’d get here earlier, and got lucky.  I even flew coach, just so I could see Riley again.”  Norm was impressed, Sean hated flying coach.  Sean continued on, “It was only 2 hours, so not too bad.  I grabbed a rental car when I landed.  Is she here?”

“In the shower.”

Sean got a big smile at that.  Norman said, “Let me grab my bag and I’ll go to Lisa’s.  Why didn’t you just let yourself in?”   
“I wanted to surprise Riley.  Again.  I feel bad I didn’t get her any flowers this time.  The ones I got her in New York didn’t last, I know.  I saw them in a shop in the airport and just grabbed them.”   
“She doesn’t care about flowers, she only cares about you.”

 

Norman got out of there, telling Sean to remind Riley that he’d be back Sunday morning.  Sean locked the door behind him, then quickly shucked his clothes and crept quietly into her bathroom.  When he came in, she had her eyes closed, head tilted back, rinsing shampoo out of her hair.  

Riley was rinsing the soap out of her hair, when she suddenly stilled.  She felt like someone was watching her, she opened her eyes and turned her head.

  
“Hi, pretty girl.”


	50. Chapter 50

Riley did the same thing she’d done at the penthouse.  Just looked at him for a minute, and then blinked twice.  He was still there.  And naked, too!

 

She smiled and asked, “You just gonna stand there with your dick pointing to the ceiling or are you gonna come in here with me?”

Sean didn’t hesitate to climb in with her, wrap his arms around her, and kiss her.  Pulling back he smiled.  She asked, “How did you get here?  You said your plane didn’t land until 9!”   
“I’ve been at the airport since 6 am hoping to get a flight on standby, and I did.  Grabbed a rental car when I landed and came here.  Didn’t want to be away from you any longer than I had to.”

 

Sean slid his hands over her wet skin, telling her, “Norman left, said to tell you he’d be back on Sunday morning….”  He turned her so her back was against the wall.  Riley lifted one of her legs on his hip and guided him inside of her.  Grasping her thigh, he let out a moan.  “Need you, Sean,” she muttered as she pressed her lips to his.  “Everything feels crazy and scary right now.  Everything except you,” she told him as he started to move inside of her.   
“I’m here, babygirl.  You aren’t going through this alone.  I’ll always be here for you.  Always.”

He pulled up her other thigh, and she wrapped her legs around him as he pounded into her.  It felt like he would fuck her right through the bathroom wall, and she was okay with that.  Riley started kissing up his wet shoulder as the water sprayed on their bodies.  Across his shoulder, up his neck, her tongue shooting out on his earlobe.     
“Fuck, Riley-girl…”   
“Just like that, Sean….RIGHT THERE!!!”

Sean pressed his open mouth against hers, not to kiss her, just to completely take in her moans as she came, wrapped around him.

“Oh god, SEAN!!!! OH!!!  FUCK!!!!  I FUCKING LOVE YOU….I love you so much…..”   
That was all he needed, and he cried out as well, saying her name over and over again, like a prayer.   
“Oh Riley….OH RILEY! RILEY!!!  Oh fuck, Riley!   I love you, angel….forever…”

 

They stayed that way for a long time.  Sean’s softening cock slowly slid out of her, but he still held her against him, her legs wrapped around him.  Neither of them said anything.  They didn’t have to.  Sunday’s meeting with Ghia was going to be a game changer, and they both knew it.  If she offered Riley an advance and it was big enough, she could finally go live with Sean.  Her future with him was riding on this damn book, and they both knew it.

 

She finally unwrapped herself from him and he lowered her to the ground.  He picked up the bottle of hair conditioner and applied some to her hair, gently combing his fingers through the strands.  Riley picked up her little shower pouf sponge, but Sean took it out of her hands, squeezing some body wash onto it, and gently washed her body.  Riley suddenly realized that he had the same things at his house.  He had bought those things for her.  A little bath pouf, her favorite body wash, and favorite shampoo and conditioner.  It had never even occurred to her until that very second.

Sean saw her expression change.  “What’s wrong angel?”   
“All this shower stuff I have.  You have the same stuff at your house.  You have it there for me.”   
He gave her a small smile.  “Of course I do.  Because mi casa es su casa.  My home is yours, Ri.  I gave you a key for a reason.  You are welcome there anytime, day or night, whether I’m there or not. I want to make it comfortable for you.  Anything you want there, you can have.  Haven’t you realized that?”

Riley got teary.  “I guess I was just so comfortable there, that I didn’t even notice what you did to make it that way.  I’m sorry.”   
He put his arms around her again.  “Don’t be sorry.  I’m glad you didn’t notice.  That’s the whole point.”

 

They got out of the shower and headed to Riley’s room to get dressed.  Sean saw the shirt he had given her all washed and folded on top of the dresser and smiled.  Rummaging in his bag, he pulled out her pillowcase.  “Sorry I didn’t wash it.  I was in a rush.”  Without even batting an eye, Riley put it on her pillow  It smelled like him now.

 

Sean saw a white floral dress hanging on a hook on the back of her closet door.  “Is that yours, babe?  It’s pretty.”   
“Yeah.  I thought I could wear this when we meet Ghia on Sunday.  I have these little shoes that go with it,” she said as she pulled out a pair of flats.  “I want to make a good impression,” she said, eyes downcast.   
Suddenly she busied herself getting dressed.  Sean took her hand and pulled her over to sit on the bed next to him.  “You’ll make a good impression because you already have.  What’s wrong?”   
“It’s just….that dress covers up most of my scars.  I didn’t want her to see them first thing, you know?  Normally I don’t even care, but...I want her to see ME, to see Riley.  Not fucked up scarred up victim girl.”  Riley hung her head, ashamed.   
“Hey.  HEY!” Sean snapped, making her look up at him.  “You are not ‘fucked up scarred up victim girl’, and I don’t EVER want to hear you talk about yourself like that again, do you understand me?  What happened to the girl who didn’t care what people thought about her scars?  Who didn’t care if people pointed, or stared, or whispered?  Who didn’t care when that twat outed you and said you looked like you went through a wood chipper?  Because that‘s the Riley I know.”

She looked at him.  “I don’t want to embarrass you around the L.A. crowd because of how I look.”

“Jesus, Ri.  You don’t embarrass me.  You’re the most beautiful girl in the world to me.  A couple of guys on set asked me when my ‘badass babe’ was coming to visit.  They were sad they wouldn’t get to meet you.  I showed them a bunch of pictures of you on my phone.  They thought you were really pretty, Ri.  You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me.  You’re a survivor.”   
Riley smiled at him.  Taking a deep breath, she said, “You’re right.  I’m being silly about this.  I’m still going to wear the dress, but just because it’s a nice dress.  I DO want to make a good impression, because it’s my first time meeting her in person.  But she knows I have scars.  I’m not going to be ashamed.”   
“That’s my girl!”

 

Riley went out to the mailbox to get the mail, and upon returning said, “Hey look!  I got my passport!”

Sean opened it and looked at the picture.  Unlike most passports, where people looked pissed, Riley had a big smile.  She smiled in her driver’s license photo, too.  Her logic was sound: that’s actually the one picture people see the most, and the one people like the least.  Before getting hers taken, she’d taken the time to put on a bit of makeup and fix her hair so she looked pretty.  But she always looked pretty to him.

Sean looked at her.  “Now we don’t have to be apart again if I do another movie in Canada.  Or anywhere, really.  Here, sit down, I wanted to show you something.”  He pulled out his iPad, searched for a moment, then handed it to her.  “This is my foreword.  I wanted to make sure you think it’s ok.”

 

Riley settled back against the headboard and read.

 

“Riley came into my life at a time when I thought I’d never love anybody ever again.  I went to visit Norman after a horrible break up with my now ex-wife.  He took me to see this cool bartender chick he knew (this was before he had hired Riley to work for him).  And I saw this gorgeous girl slinging drinks and wondered why the Hell he wasn’t dating her.  She gave me a hard time from that very first meeting, and I think that’s why I liked her.

I was staying with the two of them in Norman’s house when Riley was attacked.  I still remember Norman answering her phone call for help and feeling my blood run cold.  I couldn’t understand why anyone would hurt her.  I still don’t.

She has such a big heart.  The fact that I am still part of her life proves that.  I screwed up with her, more than once, and she forgave me.  I am a better person because of her.

Her kindness is boundless.  A little girl in a store once asked her about her scars, and Riley told her very simply that she had been in a ‘bad accident’.  The little girl told Riley that she liked her ‘lines’, they reminded her of a tiger.  My Tiger Lady.  

She doesn’t care if people stare or whisper or point.  She once told me if they couldn’t see past the scars, that was THEIR problem…her scars aren’t who she is.    
Those scars are badges of honor.  She was tougher than someone else.  She survived, and those scars prove it.  But I don’t see them.  I only see my beautiful Riley.  

I sang to her and held her hand in the hospital.  I fell in love with her.  I stumbled and tripped and screwed up….and she waited for me to get my shit together.  Granddaddy would have been appalled at the way I handled the situation.  He would have smacked me upside the head and told me, ‘Go getcha that unicorn boy!’   
I got her Granddaddy.   
I got her and I’m not letting her go.”

 

It was one of the sweetest things she’d ever read.  She felt tears filling her eyes as she looked up at him and asked, “You think Granddaddy would like me?”   
“He would have loved you.  And he wouldn’t have tolerated me treating you the way I did.  I’m sorry.”   
“Stop.  What’s done is done.  We fixed it.  Everything is okay now.”

 

They decided to spend the day cuddling in Riley’s bed and watching TV.  Suddenly Sean spoke.  “Ri, did you see your therapist?”   
“Yes.”

“What did she say?”   
Riley took a deep breath.  “She said she’s not surprised I had a meltdown.  The book was my biggest stressor, and I bet my entire future on it.  She says she doesn’t think I’ll go through that again, especially with it actually being published.”  Riley left out the part about when her therapist asked if she would live with Sean.  She didn’t want to bring that up now.  Too much.  Book first.

“Okay.  Thank you for doing that, Ri.  And if you need to see her again, it’s okay.  You know that, right?”   
“Yep.”

 

They napped and cuddled off and on for most of the day.  When it came time for dinner, Riley stole one of his t-shirts, and heated up some leftovers for them.  After they ate, Sean went to use the bathroom while Riley cleared the table.  When he came back in, she was bent over the table, straightening a placemat.  He looked at those sexy legs of hers, leading up to a pair of striped booty shorts just barely visible under the bottom of his shirt.  He said in a low voice, “Don’t move.”

Sean just looked at her.  She was up on her toes, and he noticed her legs starting to shake.  He told her, “You can put your heels down.”  She did, but stayed bent over, still as possible.  She could feel him walking up behind her, but didn’t dare turn around.

He knelt behind her and ran his hands up the back of her legs.  Those little booty shorts showed off her ass perfectly.  He cupped a cheek in each hand and squeezed them.  “Love your hot little ass, babygirl.”   
“Thank you, sir.”   
Sean smiled, then leaned forward, running his tongue on the sensitive area where her ass and thighs met, making her release a soft little moan.  He stood behind her without warning, and gave her a few sharp slaps to her ass.  She was still bent over the heavy oak table, so he commanded her, “Stand up straight, little girl.”

Riley did as she was told, still keeping her eyes straight ahead.  Sean stripped down to his boxer briefs and pressed his big, warm body against her tiny one.  “Arms up,” he told her.  Without hesitation, she raised up her arms, and he pulled off his shirt that she was wearing, dropping it to the floor.  He slid his arms around her, and immediately started to gently pull and tweak her nipples.  “No more 5 weeks apart, little girl.”   
“No sir, never again,” Riley promised as she arched her back, pushing her tits against his touch.

“So beautiful,” he whispered against her ear, kissing the lobe gently.  He was rock hard up against her ass, and she tried to push back against it.  When she did, he dropped his hands away from her body and took a step back.  “No, Riley!  Bad girl!” he said, smacking her ass.  He pushed himself against her body and whispered, “You know better than that, I know you do…”   
“You’re right, I’m so sorry, sir.”

Sean smiled.  Poor girl was going to explode.  He ran one hand down her body to the crotch of those sexy little panties, and they were soaked.  He ran his finger along her clit, through her panties, and felt her shake as she fought against wanting to push against his hand.  Sean slowly slid her panties down her legs, and tossed them over to where their clothes were in a pile.  Turning her to face him, he could see the frustration on her face.  

Picking her up, Sean sat Riley on the edge of the heavy wooden table, telling her, “Lay back, angel.”  She did, and he pushed her legs open and back, and told her, “Hold on to them.”   
“What are you doing?”   
“I ate all my vegetables like a good boy, so I get to have dessert.”


	51. Chapter 51

Riley smiled at that.  “I’m your dessert?”

“Damn right you are,” he said, pulling up a chair.  “Hold those legs tight, babygirl.”   
He leaned forward and gave her a few short, fast licks.  Then used his fingers to spread her wide open.  He just looked at her for a moment, all pink and glistening, and his mouth started to water for real.  Never thought he’d get to where he loved to eat pussy, but Riley brought that out in him.

Sean all but dove between her legs, pushing his tongue deeply inside her, loving her taste.  He dipped two fingers in quickly and used the lubrication to rub her clit, lapping inside of her over and over.

It wasn’t long before Riley’s legs started to tremble.  He had admitted to her that he wasn’t into going down on girls too much before her, but god damn was he good at it.  He ate pussy like it was his last meal.

Feeling her legs start to shake, he muttered against her, “Taste so good, give it to me, Ri…”

With his 2 fingers swirling over her clit, and his tongue up in her twat, she came hard.  Her nails were digging into her thighs where she was holding her legs, her back was arching against the tabletop, and her mouth was releasing the most beautiful cries he’d ever heard.  He kept his mouth latched onto her pussy so he wouldn’t miss a drop.

When he was sure he’d lapped up every last drop of moisture from her, he stood.  Looking at her laying on the table, eyes closed, chest heaving, still holding her legs up and open….she was perfect.  He released her hands from her thighs and gently lowered her legs, standing between them as they dangled over the edge of the table.  He leaned over her and softly said, “Baby?”

Riley slowly opened her eyes.  She looked at him, gave him an adorable little smile, and said, “Hi.”   
He chuckled.  “Hi there.  You doing okay?”   
“Oh yeah.  We can never tell Norman about this!”   
“Oh HELL no.  Bad enough we banged on the couch in the penthouse.  He would never forgive us for defiling his kitchen table.”

 

Sean helped her off the table on shaky legs.  “Let’s go to bed, angel.”   
“Wait,” she told him, smiling.  “One good turn deserves another.”  She went down on her knees, pulled out his cock and slipped it into her mouth before he could say anything.  She wrapped her hand around the base and started doing that wonderful hand twist thing as she sucked him off.  He leaned against the table so his legs wouldn’t give out, and looked down at her.  He pushed her hair out of the way, and her big eyes turned up to look at him.  “Fuck, Riley,” he breathed.  She slid him out of her mouth and stroked him with her hand, never breaking eye contact.  Finally she dipped her head and ran her tongue along the seam of his balls.  “No, Riley, don’t,” Sean stopped her.  “I don’t wanna pass out.  Especially because I’m standing.”   
Instead, she started licking and sucking on his balls, making him moan, as she continued stroking him.  Suddenly they both heard a confused sounding. “Mrowww?”

There was Eye, standing in the doorway looking at them.  They both started laughing.  Sean said, “Eye, don’t tell Norman about this and I’ll buy you your own can of tuna.”  Eye tilted his head, gave a more agreeable meow and left.  Riley looked up at him, “You better buy him that tuna, he’ll totally snitch on us if you don’t.”   
“Don’t I know it!  Damn cat.”   
Before he could say anything else, Riley sucked him back into her mouth, bobbing her head in earnest.  Looking up at him, she was greeted by a beautiful sight: his head was back, his chest was heaving with his quickened breathing, his muscles tensing up.  His head dropped and he looked at her.  His eyes were almost back, his pupils were so big.  His Riley.  HIS.  Ring or no ring, house or no house, she was his, and he was hers.  Nothing would ever change that.  

“Babygirl, I’m gonna cum,” he warned her.  As always, she swallowed, she loved the taste of him.  She stood, and there was a drop of cum on her chin.  Sean wiped it off with his finger, and Riley opened her mouth, but to her surprise, he licked it off his own finger.  Riley’s eyes got big, and Sean told her, “Any guy who tells you he’s never tasted his own cum is either lying or boring.  Can’t expect a girl to swallow if you won’t.”

He pulled her close to him and held her for a few minutes while he caught his breath.  Then he asked her, “We ready to head back to the bedroom now?  Movies and cuddles?”   
Riley smiled up at him.  “Yes to all of the above.”

 

They headed for Riley’s room and climbed into bed.  After deciding on a movie on Netflix, they turned out the lights and curled up together.  Riley was asleep within minutes, Sean’s sleepy little angel.  He watched her instead of the movie.  Watched her eyes move beneath the lids, saw her nose twitch like a little bunny.  He gently kissed her forehead and whispered softly, “I love you, Riley-girl.”  In her sleep, she snuggled up against him a little tighter.  Sean turned off the movie and went to sleep.

 

The next morning was more of the same: fucking randomly around the house while taking breaks for food and naps.  After one nap, Sean woke up in the bed alone.  He tugged on some sleep pants and went in search of Riley.  She was out by the pool in a lounge chair, beer by her side, sunglasses on, wearing that string bikini he loved.  He went back in the bedroom, threw on some swim trunks and sunglasses, grabbed a beer and plopped into the chair next to hers.  “Hey, babygirl.”   
“Hey handsome.”

 

They sat quietly for a few minutes, just looking out at the pool and the woods beyond it.  Suddenly, Sean reached over, grabbed the arm of her lounge chair, and yanked it closer to his, muttering, “Much better,” as he took her hand.

This was what Sean loved.  They didn’t have to talk all the time.  They could just sit quietly and enjoy each other’s presence.  He remembered the night that they delivered the script when she was staying with him.  He went over the scene and she watched TV while they sat on the couch.  He just loved being close to her. 

 

Riley loved being close to him as well.  A smile played on her lips.  She stood, tossed her sunglasses on her chair, walked over to Sean and straddled him on his lounge chair.  He looked at her through his sunglasses, and she slowly slid them off his face.  She ran her soft fingertips along the lines on his face (god how she loved those lines), and Sean closed his eyes, reveling in her touch.  She ran her hands down his chest over his nipples, making him jump, and down to the waistband of his swim trunks, where she stopped.  Sean opened his eyes.  She seemed to be lost in thought.  “Riley?” Her eyes shot back up to him, and she smiled at him.  “You okay, babygirl?”   
She nodded.  Scooting back a bit on his lap, she pulled his perpetually hard unit out, started to gently stroke him, and Sean sucked in a breath.  He watched as Riley pulled her bikini bottoms to one side, and lowered herself down onto him.  Reaching for her hips, Sean was stopped by her.  She pinned his arms down to the arms of his chair.  They both knew that she didn’t have the strength to really pin him down, but he liked the way she was talking control.  She used her hands on his arms on the chair and her own thighs as leverage to raise and lower herself on his cock.  Riley was releasing the most fabulous little moans and mewls, driving Sean crazy.

“Sean, do you want me?”   
“Fuck yes, I do!  Every minute of every day!”

“Tell me.  Say it.”  Riley stilled with him buried deep inside of her.  She got a wicked gleam in her eyes as he felt her inner walls rhythmically squeezing him.  He grit his teeth, trying not to blow his load right then and there.  He took a deep breath, then looked her dead in the eye, and said softly, “I want you, Riley.  More than I’ve ever wanted anybody or anything before.  You’re the goddamn air that I breathe.”

Riley’s eyes got wide when he said that.  She wasn’t expecting that.  She started to ride him, rocking her hips against his.

“Riley, let me touch your beautiful body, girl.”

She released his arms, and he immediately let his hands travel all over her body.  Sean had every inch memorized, every dip, every curve, every last little mark, down to the tiny random freckle on the back of her shoulder that she probably didn’t even know that she had.  He knew.  He could draw a map of her body in the dark.

Pulling her gently to him by the back of her neck, he placed a gentle kiss on her lips, and said softly, “My beautiful little angel.”

Riley was riding him hard, squeezing him.  He started thrusting against her, telling her, “I’m real close, baby.”   
She drew close to him, looked him dead in the eye, and told him with a wicked gleam in her eye, “Scream my name so loud the neighbors hear it!”   
Fuck yes.

 

Sean exploded inside of her so loud, she thought the neighbors probably DID hear it.  “RILEY!  FUCK, RILEY!  I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!  OH RILEY!!!!”  Then softer, “You’re mine, Riley.  Mine…”   
Riley came as well, throwing her head back and releasing a few cries, her body jerking atop his.  “MMMM!  AH!  OH SEAN!  Oh Sean...I’m yours…”   
He held her tightly against him as she rode out her aftershocks.  “I’ve got you, girl.”

 

Sean slid out of her, and adjusted himself with Riley still on top of him.  He reached down and adjusted her bottoms, and she lay next to him on the chair.  They lay that way for awhile.  Sean asked her softly, “You ok?”   
“Yeah.  Still nervous about tomorrow.”   
“Nothing to be nervous about.  She’ll love you as much as I do.”

Riley lifted her head and looked at him.  “I hope not!”

 

Riley and Sean were having breakfast the next morning when Norman came home.  He poured a cup of coffee and joined them, asking Riley, “Have you checked your email?”   
“No….why?”   
“I...sent you my foreword from Lisa’s place last night.  I wanted her to read it, you know, to make sure it made sense.  She said it was good, but…..”   
Riley went over to the computer, started it up and logged in.  She clicked on the email notification from him and read it.

 

“What can I say about Riley?  She’s the best friend anyone could ever have.  She helped make my house a home.  She’s made me smile when I was down.  She made sure I took better care of myself, ate right, got some sleep.     
Sure, I hired her to cook my meals and take care of my house, but she does so much more.  She has a heart you wouldn’t believe.  Like that old ‘Minnie the Moocher’ song, Riley has ‘a heart as big as a whale’.  

Riley is beautiful, strong and sweet.  Smart as a whip, and tough as nails.  Her survival from this maniac (not once, but TWICE), proves her strength.  I don’t know that I could be as tough as she was.  I don’t know that anyone could.  And yet, the day after the first attack, she was trying to sweep my kitchen floor.  And no, we didn’t let her.

Nobody deserves what happened to her.  But she stopped that maniac.  He attacked her a second time.  He’d killed women before her, and she made sure he would never do it again.  She told us she was ready to die that night.  But she didn’t.  She made it.  She flatlined twice that night and fell into a coma, but she fought her way back to us.  And I am thankful every day that my friend is still here.

Riley, I love you, and I couldn’t be more proud of you.”

 

The guys heard sniffling and turned to find Riley in tears at the computer.  Poor Norman misunderstood, telling her, “I’m sorry!  I can write something better!”   
Riley turned to him saying, “Don’t you dare!  Don’t you dare change one single solitary word!”  She jumped up and ran to him, holding onto him and crying.  He just held his friend in his arms.  “It’s okay, Ri.  Everything is okay now.”

Sean watched the two of them interact.  They really had a friendship like he’d never seen.  He hadn’t even been sure people of the opposite sex could really, truly be “just friends” until he’d seen them together.  They had a lot of love for each other, but it was completely platonic.  

Riley finally calmed herself, and Norman pulled away gently from her, leaning down to get to her eye level.  “We good?”   
“Yeah, boss man” she smiled.  “We’re good.”

 

Later that afternoon, Riley and Sean showered and got ready for the meeting with Ghia.  Sean watched as Riley nervously fussed with her hair, eventually settling on a loose french braid that draped over her shoulder.  She put on just a bit of makeup, then put on her flowered dress and flats.     
Turning to Sean, she asked nervously, “How do I look?  Do I look okay?”   
Sean smiled at her.  “You look absolutely beautiful, sweetie.”   
“Do I look professional?  Like a real writer?  Maybe I should do something else with my hair…” she moved to sit at her vanity again, but Sean stopped her.

“Baby, you look great.  Very professional, and very beautiful.”   
“I just…..I want to make a good impression.”   
“Baby, you will because you already have.”     
They walked out into the living room together, and Norman looked up from his phone, playing Candy Crush, likely.  He smiled and said, “You look real nice, Ri.  She’s gonna love you.”

 

They had decided to take Herbie instead of Sean’s rental car - Herbie was a big part of who Riley was.

As she pulled into a parking spot at the diner, Sean turned to her from the passenger seat.     
“You ready for this, baby?”   
“No.  But I’m going to do it anyway.”   
“That’s my girl.”   
  
They got out, Sean took her hand, and they walked into the diner, Katie Lou’s Cafe, together.

The bell over the door tinkled as they walked in.  The waitress looked over, recognizing them, and said, “Well hi, Riley!  Hi, Sean!  Y’all just sit anywhere and I’ll get with ya in just a minute.”

Sean looked around and steered Riley to a booth in the back, telling her, “Ghia’s not here yet.  Let’s sit down and get something to eat.”   
“I’m not hungry.”   
“You didn’t eat lunch, babe.  At least get a piece of pie.”   
Riley sighed.  She was too nervous to eat, but she didn’t need to argue right now.  He was right, she should get something in her stomach.  “Yeah, ok.”

The waitress came over, and Sean ordered peach pie for both of them, and two diet Cokes.

“Sean, I’m scared.”   
Sean looked at Riley.  She wasn’t kidding.  She was pale and her hands were shaking.

“Riley, you need to calm down.  Jesus, you’re so calm around the cast of the show, some of the most famous people in the world, but you’re freaking out over one woman.  One.”   
“That woman is about to determine my future.”   
Sean ran a hand through his hair.  “No she isn’t Riley.  YOU decide.  Regardless of what happens with the book, your life is up to you.  Whether you stay in Senoia, come live with me, or drive Herbie to Timbuktu, that is YOUR decision.  It has nothing to do with Ghia or the book.  It’s all on you…..and I think you know that and I think that is what’s scaring you.”  Sean had looked at his plate the entire time.

Riley replied softly, “You’re right.”

He turned to look at her.   Before anything else could be said, the bell over the door tinkled.  Sean turned his head, smiled and stood.  “Ghia!  We’re back here!”

_ ‘Here goes nothing,’   _ Riley thought.


	52. Chapter 52

Ghia walked over to their table with a smile on her face, greeting Sean with a warm hug.  “How are you Sean?”   
“Doing great, really great!  And this is Riley,” he said turning toward her.

Riley stood and awkwardly said, “Um...hi.”

 

Ghia looked at the girl.  It was obvious she was nervous.  “Hello, Riley!  Please don’t be nervous.  I promise I won’t bite.  Besides, I’M the one who should be nervous.  I’m a fan of your book!” 

 

The three of them sat down, Riley and Sean on one side, Ghia on the other.  Ghia noticed that Sean was holding Riley’s hand under the table.  The poor girl was really terrified.

Riley took a breath, “Um, do you want some pie?  We just had some.  It’s really good…”  She wanted to kick herself.  She sounded like an idiot.  Ugh.  She looked down at the table.

To her surprise, Ghia said, “Pie?  That actually sounds really good.  What kind did you have?”

Riley’s eyes shot back up.  “P-peach.  It’s the specialty here.  You know, Georgia peaches...”

“Well that sounds delicious.”

Sean waved the waitress over and ordered some pie for her, which was brought over right away.  Ghia took a big bite.  “Oh wow….now that is delicious!”

Riley smiled.  They made small talk while Ghia ate.  Mainly Ghia just letting Riley know how long she’d worked in publishing, other authors she’d worked with, her own favorite books.  

Riley finally started to relax a bit.

 

“I love to read,” Riley told her.   
“It’s true,” Sean interjected.  “Riley always carries a book in her purse.  If she ever gets stuck in a line in a store, she pulls it out and starts to read.”   
“Really?” Ghia was intrigued.  “That’s a good idea!  Sometimes you get too busy to read, but if you’re in line at the post office or wherever, you can at least get a few lines in.  Of course the best book I’ve read in awhile is yours.”

Riley blushed.  “It’s not that good,” she demurred.

“But it is,” Ghia insisted.  “Riley, I cried when I read your book.  I stayed up two nights in a row to read it all.  And it’s all true.  Reading what happened to you, I can’t even believe you are sitting here in front of me.  You’re sitting in front of me and you’re okay.  That is really amazing.”

Riley didn’t know what to say.  So Ghia continued, “Did Sean and Norman write forewords for it?”

“Yes, they did,” Riley turned to Sean and he pulled out his iPad.  She had pasted them both into a doc there in case Ghia wanted to read them.  Sean handed it to Ghia and they were all quiet as she read.

Ghia raised her eyes, full of tears, when she was done.  “You guys definitely have a way with words,” she said, dabbing at her eyes with a napkin.  “Have you thought of a title for the book?” she asked Riley.

“Yeah, but if it doesn’t work, we could change it.  It’s probably not that good,” she said with uncertainty.

Sean looked at her.  “You didn’t tell me you had a title.”   
“You didn’t ask.”

Ghia laughed.  “Well, what is it?”

 

RIley looked at them both.  “I was thinking ‘Sunflowers and Second Chances’.  But I know you have marketing people and stuff-”   
“It’s perfect,” Ghia interrupted her.   
“It is?”  Riley asked.

“Yes. You stated in the book about your love for sunflowers, and you gave Sean a second chance after he was a dick to you… Sean, what the hell was wrong with you?”

 

Sean had a mouthful of soda.  He swallowed it and said, “I thought I was protecting her.  She put it in her book.  I mean, I just…” he trailed off.  Both women were trying not to laugh.  “You girls are mean!” he said as they dissolved into giggles.

 

They chatted for a bit and then Ghia told Riley, “We’d like to go ahead with the book.  We are prepared to offer you an advance.”   
“Advance?  But if the book doesn’t do well, won’t I have to pay it back?”   
“I don’t see that happening.  We really want to push this, Riley.  We believe in it.  We think it could be big….really big.”  Ghia went into her bag and pulled out a small slip of paper.  “This is what we want to offer, to start.  Of course you will get a large percentage of all books sold.  I have a contract as well.  You can have your lawyer look it over and see that it is fair.  We are willing to negotiate on anything you want changed.”   
  


Riley looked at the small slip of paper.  It was a check.  Norman paid her well, and her only expense really was Herbie.  But this was more than she made in a year.  $75,000.  

Ghia excused herself to go to the restroom, and Sean looked at Riley.  She was pale and shaking again.  “What’s the matter, Ri?”   
“Sean, look at the size of this check.  This is more than Norman pays me in a year.”   
“But that’s good, baby.  They believe in you.”

“I don’t have a lawyer to look at the contract.”   
“Come down next week and I’ll take you to see mine.”

“Sean, I’m really scared.  This is all happening so fast.”   
He put his arm around her.  “Babygirl, just breathe, okay?  I will be with you every step of the way.  You’ve also got Lisa and Norman and the whole cast of The Walking Dead backing you up.  That’s a damn good cheerleading squad.  You can do this.  I know you can.  I believe in you.”

He gave her a sweet kiss on the lips.  Ghia came back and started gathering up her things.  “I hate to eat and run, but I need to catch a flight back to L.A. tonight.  Riley, do you think you can get back to us on that contract within a month?”   
Riley looked at Sean, and he gave her a tiny nod.  “Um, yeah.  Sure thing.”   
Ghia sat back down and looked at Riley.  Giving her a soft smile, she said, “I know this is probably all very overwhelming for you.  But the only reason we are going forward so fast is because we want to get that book out there.  You need to prepare yourself, Riley.  We think it will be big.  You may get asked to come on talk shows and the like.  Get ready for that.”

Riley just nodded.

Ghia stood and Sean hugged her goodbye.

 

“You ok, Riley-girl?”   
“Yeah, we need to go to the bank right now.  I don’t want to carry this check around.  I feel weird.  Here, you hold it.”  She gave it to Sean like it was diseased.

 

Sean was worried for Riley, this was really overwhelming.  He could tell that she was happy and excited, but also terrified.  It was a lot to take in.  Sean drove Herbie, and they went to the bank to the ATM since it was Sunday.  Riley deposited the check into her savings.  She just looked at the receipt all the way home.

Sean pulled over to the side of the road.  “Riley, you know, you don’t have to do this.  You don’t have to publish the book.  I could call Ghia and we can cancel.  We can give back the money.”   
Riley took a breath.  “I want this, I really do.  It’s just….”   
“Moving kind of fast?”

“Yeah.”   
Sean put his arm around her.  “You aren’t alone.  Please remember that.  You’re an amazing woman, with an extraordinary story that is going to touch a lot of people.  It will help a lot of people.  Remember that you said that was why you did it.  So people could see there was still life after something like that.”

Riley thought about it.  He noticed the old Riley coming back.  She said, “You know what?  You’re right.  I was right.  I worked hard for this.  I DESERVE this.  I survived.  I’m not ashamed.  He did shit to me, so what?  That hasn’t made me less of a person.  If it sells one copy, that’s fine.  If it sells one million, that’s fine, too.”   
“That’s my girl!”

 

He pulled back out and they headed home.  When she told Norman about her advance, he said, “Crap. That’s more than you make in a year!”

They discussed her contract, and Norman told her it was 100% okay for her to go next week to see Sean so his lawyers could look over the contract.

 

After all of that hullabaloo and running the gamut of emotions like she had, Riley went to lay down for a bit.  Sean promised he’d be in shortly.  He and Norman got beers and sat on the back deck, looking out at the woods.

Finally Norman spoke.  “You’re gonna take her away, aren’t you?”

“I love her, buddy.  I want her with me.  You act like you’ll never see her again.”   
“I love her, too, you know.”   
“DIfferent kind of love, bro.  You know it.”   
“Yeah.”   
“Besides, she might not go.”   
“She will.  She loves you, too.  And now that she’s more financially secure…she’s as good as gone.”

 

Sean went to lay down with Riley.  She was already asleep when he climbed into bed with her.  He wasn’t going to ask her to stay with him just yet.  She was still overwhelmed.  She really was dealing with a lot.

Reaching for his phone, he double checked his flight home.  He was flying back Tuesday morning.  He booked a flight for her to come out the following Sunday.  He made the return ticket for Wednesday afternoon.  He would have to make an appointment with his lawyer for Monday.  That taken care of, he put his phone aside and cuddled up against his girl.

 

Riley woke up as the sun was setting with Sean curled protectively around her.  She slid out of bed quietly and threw on some sweatpants and a t-shirt.  She found Norman out on the back deck still, several empty beer bottles next to him.  Uh oh.  She walked out of the sliding glass doors and over to him.  She started picking up the empty bottles.  “Hitting the sauce a little hard for a Sunday, boss man.”

He laughed humorlessly.  “I guess I am.”

Riley put the bottles in the recycle bin and held out her hand for the one he was drinking from.  He looked at her as she said, “I think you’ve had plenty for today.”  He heaved a sigh and handed her the half empty bottle.  She was right.  Who was going to take care of him when she was gone?  Who would make sure he got enough sleep and ate right and would smack the damn booze out of his hand?

Riley poured out what was left in the bottle off the deck and chucked that bottle into the recycle bin.  Sitting in the chair next to him, she asked, “Did you and Sean have a fight?”   
He gave her a confused look.  “No, why would you think that?”

“Well, you were thrilled for me when I got home, you and Sean sat out here for a bit before he came in to lay down with me, and it looks like you’ve been out here chugging ever since.”

“Nah.  Nothing like that.”   
“Then what?  Are you and Lisa having problems?”   
“What? No.”   
  


Whatever was going on with him, Riley could tell he wasn’t going to confide in her tonight.  “Alright boss.  Why don’t you come inside and I’ll get you something to soak up all that booze in your stomach.”

“I’m fine, Ri,” he said as he stood and promptly stumbled.  Riley grabbed onto him.  “Maybe I’m not as fine as I thought,” he muttered.

Riley helped him into a chair at the kitchen table.  She picked up the phone and ordered a pizza, hoping that would help.  It was more substantial than anything she could make at the moment.

Sean came stumbling in with bed head.  He was like a giant sleepy toddler.  He walked over to Riley and kissed the top of her head, walked over and did the same to Norman, went to the refrigerator and got out a diet Coke, then plopped down in a seat.  “Food?”   
Riley smiled.  “Pizza is on the way, sleepyhead.”

 

While they waited for the pizza, Sean went over the flight info he’d set up for Riley.  Norman okayed the time off so she could meet with the lawyer.  Sean peered at Norman.  “You drunk, brother?”

“Yeah, so?” he snapped.

Sean looked at Riley, but she didn’t know what was going on either.  There was knock from the pizza delivery guy, and Riley went to answer it.

Sean turned to Norman.  “What’s going on?  Why are you drunk?”   
“You’re taking Riley away.  Who the hell is going to take care of me like she did, huh?”   
“Well, you’ve got Lisa, and we all know you will move her in with you.  Also, you’re a grown ass man.  Take care of your goddamn self!”

“Fuck you!”   
“Fuck you, Norman!  Riley isn’t your mom.  Her job with you was to cook, clean, and run errands for you.  You did fine before she ever came along, and you’ll manage after she’s gone!  I know she’s your best friend, but Jesus, it’s not like we won’t ever come to visit.  Let her be happy.  Let her move on.  Let her go.”   
“As long as she goes with you, right?”   
“Is that what this is all about?  Do you think I won’t treat her right?  That I don’t love her?  If she wanted to move somewhere else and not with me, it would fucking destroy me, but I’d let her go, because I want her to be happy.  Is that what you want?  Do you want her to be happy?”

“Of course I do!”   
“Then let her.”   
  
RIley walked in holding a pizza box.  “Is everything ok?  It sounded like you two were arguing.”   
Sean stood and took  the pizza box from her.  “You know how it is.  Norman hates that I have a bigger dick.”


	53. Chapter 53

Riley rolled her eyes and got plates out of the cabinet.  Norman ate looking sullen.  Riley asked, “Boss, what’s wrong?”   
Norman exploded.   
“NOTHING!  I’M GODDAMN FINE!  Everything's just coming up roses here!  Life is just fucking grand, don’t you think?”   
Riley had never seen him like this, and he’d certainly never shouted at her... it scared her.  She jumped up from her seat and stood behind it.  Norman came charging over at her, but Sean had already put himself between the two of them.  “Isn’t that right, Riley?” Norman continued shouting, “Isn’t life just fucking grand?”  

Riley was too terrified to move and just started crying.  Sean told Norman, “Dude, calm the fuck down!  What the hell is wrong with you?”

Norman tried to punch Sean, but Sean’s reflexes were too quick.  He blocked it and took him down to the floor, pinning him.  Riley ran from the room.

 

She ran to get her phone, calling Lisa.  “Lisa, it’s Riley.  You gotta get here fast, Norman’s freaked out!”   
Lisa immediately grabbed her keys and purse, switching to her blue tooth so she could talk to Riley as she drove.  “What happened?”  She could hear shouting in the background.

“I don’t know.  He got drunk and then he started shouting at me and got in my face.  Sean got between us and Norman tried to punch him!  Sean blocked it and has him pinned to the floor!  I didn’t know what else to do but call you!”   
“You did the right thing,” Lisa assured her.  “I’ll be there in 5 minutes.  Tell Sean I’m coming!”

 

Riley ended the call and ran back to the kitchen.  Sean still had Norman pinned without so much as breaking a sweat, but Norman was flailing and swearing at Sean, telling him to fuck off and get the hell out of his house.  “I called Lisa, she’s on her way.”   
“Alright.  If he doesn’t calm down, we may have to have Rick lock him up overnight until he dries out.”   
How could he be so drunk?  Something clicked in Riley’s head, and she ran out to the recycling bin.  Bingo.  An empty bottle of whisky.  It had been slightly less than half full the day before, but it looked like Norman had polished that off in addition to the beer.  She went back in and told Sean about the empty bottle.  Norman started to shout, “So the fuck what?  It’s my house and I paid for that fucking booze!”  It was upsetting to say the least.  He was usually a happy, relaxed drunk.  Now he was really pissed off.

 

Riley heard Lisa’s car pull up and ran to open the door.  She rushed in, throwing her keys and purse on the couch.  She ran to the kitchen and got down on the floor next to Norman, shouting in that British accent of hers, “Norman Mark Reedus, you stop acting like a child this instant!”  Norman froze and looked up at her.  “Lisa?”   
“Yes, it’s me.  What the hell has gotten into you?”   
Norman didn’t say anything, but stopped struggling. 

Lisa told Sean, “Let him up, I think he’ll be alright.”   
Sean told her, “He gets in Riley’s face again, friend or not, I’ll beat the shit out of him.”   
  


He got off of Norman, and walked over to Riley, placing her behind him again.  Norman stood unsteadily, and Lisa said, “I want you to go into your bedroom, into the bathroom and take a shower.  I’ll be there in a minute.”  Norman hung his head and did as she told him.  She turned and asked Riley, “Would you put on some coffee dear?”

Riley nodded and went over to fuss with the coffee machine.  Lisa motioned for Sean to follow her into the living room.  She crossed her arms, looked at him and said, “What’s going on here?  And don’t you dare tell me nothing.”

Sean gave her the quick version about Norm being ok with Riley getting the go ahead on her book, until they were alone, then getting angry at Sean for “taking her away”.  Lisa ran her hands through her hair.  “Dear lord, he’s been preparing for this for months, literally months!  We have done nothing but talk about the what-if’s when Riley leaves, because we know she eventually will.  If he acts like this, she won’t leave.  She’ll be too worried about him.  He’s just being selfish.”

Riley came in.  “The coffee is ready.  Um, should Sean and I go somewhere else for the night?  Will Norman be okay?”   
Lisa told her, “He’s going to be fine.  I need to talk to him, but you don’t need to leave, you aren’t in any danger.  I’m going to stay as well.  I’ll be out in a little while.”  She picked up the large cup of coffee and headed into Norman’s room, closing the door behind her.

 

Riley stood in the living room, wringing her hands.  Sean walked to her and put his arms around her.  He could feel how upset she was.

“Did I say or do something to cause that outburst of his?” she asked looking up at him.  “I mean I’ve lived with him for 2 years.  He’s never so much as raised his voice to me!”   
“No sweetie, this isn’t your fault…”   
“I mean he just…..came at me!  What the hell?  He’s usually such a happy mellow drunk.”

 

Sean led her over to the couch and sat down.  “Let’s just let Lisa talk to him and see what he has to say.”  He turned on the TV, just for a distraction.  “Hey look Ri, ‘I Love Lucy’, you love this show!  And it’s the ‘Vitameatavegemin’ episode, isn’t that your favorite?”  Riley gave a small smile and nodded.  The fact that he remembered those little things were one of the many reasons she loved him.  She curled up with him on the couch.

 

When the episode was over, Lisa came out of Norman’s bedroom.  Looking at the both of them, she said to Sean, “You haven’t told her, have you?”   
Sean shook his head, softly saying, “No.”

Riley was confused.  “Told me what?  What’s going on?”

 

Sean and Lisa explained to Riley about how Norman was upset about her leaving.  “But I’m not going anywhere!” Riley exclaimed.

“But with this book coming out and from what you told Norman, that they are really going to push it, you have one foot out the door, Riley. You know that.” Lisa told her.  “He doesn’t want to lose his friend.  You have to understand, he lived alone before he took you in, and he was so lonely.  He likes having you here.  He likes that the two of you watch out for each other and take care of each other.”   
Riley looked at the floor.  She quietly said, “I don’t have to publish the book.  I can just stay here and keep working for him.”   
“No!”  Sean told her.

“Absolutely not!” Lisa said.

“But he needs me!” Riley said.

 

Lisa sat down next to her and took her hand.  “He doesn't NEED you, love.  He just doesn’t like the idea of you not being here.  It’s almost as if you’re his daughter about to go off to college.  You’ll be where he can’t watch over you and protect you.  Once this book gets started, it won’t make sense for you to stay here, and you know it.  Whether or not you live with Sean doesn’t matter.  He knows you’ll be leaving.  We’ve talked about it.  I didn’t factor in the variable of him getting drunk and stupid, however.”

 

Riley was torn.  She wanted to get this book going.  She wanted to be with Sean.  She had worked for Norman for two years, she knew she was lucky to call him a friend.   Millions of girls out there would have killed to live with him in his house 24/7, even if they did have to scrub his toilet.  Hell, they’d do it for free and with a smile.  But she knew her time was coming.  She was going to have to leave at some point, and that point was going to be sooner rather than later.  Softly she said, “I can’t give up this chance.”

Sean told her, “No, you can’t.  And you won’t.  He’ll come around.”   
Lisa spoke again.  “For what it’s worth, he feels awful about what happened, and he’ll feel even worse when he sobers up tomorrow.  I’m going to stay with him here tonight.  I’d better get back to him before he vomits on the sheets,” she said, rolling her eyes, and walked back into Norman’s room closing the door behind her.

 

They stayed up and watched a few more episodes of Lucy, there was a marathon on, then Riley headed to the kitchen to clean up after their ill-fated dinner.  Sean followed her, asking, “Need any help, sweetie?”   
“Nah, I got it. Should only take a few minutes.”

Riley wrapped up what was left of the pizza and put it in the refrigerator, and put the dirty dishes in the dishwasher.  Sean watched as her body sagged against the counter.  He came up behind her, putting his arms around her.  She was exhausted.  “Too much excitement for one day?” Sean asked her softly. 

“Yeah.”   
“Come on, princess.  Time for bed.”

He picked her up and carried her down the hall to her room.  Riley was so tired, she didn’t even argue.  He took her clothes off and pulled up the covers.  He undressed himself, paused, then reached over and locked her bedroom door.

“Sean…” she gave a sleepy protest.   
“I’m locking it, Ri.  No arguments.”

Riley just gave a sleepy nod.

Sean turned off the light and climbed into bed with her.  

 

Riley was unable to sleep.  She was exhausted, but too stressed.  In the dark, Sean could feel it.

“Can’t sleep, princess?”   
“No.” 

“Well, there is one thing I could do…”   
“I appreciate the sentiment, I really do, but I’m too exhausted to fuck.”

Sean chuckled.  “Didn’t say anything about fucking…” he said as he pushed the blankets back and slid between her legs.  “All you have to do is lay back and enjoy the ride, pretty girl.  Oh, and be quiet, so Norm and Lisa don’t hear.”   
  


Sean really didn’t want to disturb Lisa, she was nice.  But fuck Norman.  He wished they could keep him awake all night.  He hoped he was good and hungover in the morning.  He needed to remember to slam a few doors tomorrow.

 

He licked gently along her folds that were slowly getting wetter.  He swiped his tongue inside several times, and she released a gentle, breathy moan.  Very gently, he pushed her pussy lips up and back, exposing her clit.  Placing his hot mouth over it, he applied gentle, rhythmic suction.  Riley whispered, “Oh fuck, Sean!”  She spread her legs even wider, and fisted her hands in his short hair, trying to push him even harder against her.

Sean had no idea if this little suction idea of his would even work, but it seemed to be doing the job just fine.  He wanted to get her off quickly and easily so she could get some rest.  If he’d had to eat her pussy all night, he would, and without complaint.  But he just wanted her to lay back and relax, so to speak.  

 

Sean looked up at her body.  Fucking gorgeous and glowing in the moonlight coming through the windows.  He watched as she played with her nipples with one hand, the other over her mouth to conceal any sounds she made.  Her hips started moving with a rhythm of their own, and she whispered to him, “Suck a little harder, baby…”   
He increased the strength of the suction, and she whispered, “Oh god, yes…..yes yes yes…”

He started moving his head in small circles, making her gasp.  Bingo.  He kept moving his head in circles, going a little faster, while still keeping the rhythmic suction.  It didn’t take long.  He looked up at her as she came, mouth opened wide in a silent scream, fingers tangled tightly in his hair, back arching.  The only noise from her coming in soft gasps as she rode out her orgasm.  

Riley finally collapsed back on the bed, and Sean gently withdrew his mouth.  He gave her a few deep licks, more for himself than her, he loved the way she tasted.  He slid up her sweet body, giving her a soft kiss before rolling next to her and pulling her close.  Her hand went to his crotch, but he immediately pushed it away.    
“No.”   
“But you’re hard,” she mumbled sleepily.   
“I’ll live.”   
“But that’s not fair to you.”   
“I didn’t do that for you to do something back, Ri.  I did it because you’re exhausted and can’t sleep.”   
“But-”   
“Go.  To.  Sleep.  Now, angel.”   
“Okay,” she muttered in a way that made it sound like she was being punished.

  
Riley cuddled up to Sean, and was asleep in minutes.  Sean kissed the top of her head, whispering, “Good girl,” into the darkness


	54. Chapter 54

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyone still reading?

Riley woke up with her and Sean still wrapped around each other and smiled.  She got out of bed without disturbing him.  It was early, but it was Monday.   Norman was going to be hungover, so she had to prepare her famous greasy hangover breakfast for him.

 

Going into the kitchen, she quietly got out her frying pan, then some eggs and bacon, and started cooking.  The bacon was first, always, then straight into the oven to keep warm.  She started in on the eggs and Norman’s coffee.  

Lisa’s voice came from behind her.  “You’re making him breakfast?  He’d be lucky to get dry toast and coffee from me after way he acted last night.”   
Riley smiled at her.  “Well, I still work for him.  And he’s still my friend. Unless he kicks me out or something, it’s my job to take care of him.  Believe me, I’m not happy with him-”

“And you shouldn’t be,” came Norman’s voice from the doorway and they turned around.  “It was unforgivable, Ri.”   
He came and sat down at the table, head in his hands.  Riley couldn’t decide if it was from the hangover or the embarrassment.  She plated his eggs, gave him some bacon and his coffee, and placed it all in front of him.  He looked up at her, the sadness evident on his face.  He stood and took a step toward her, “Ri…”  She took a step back, not looking at him.  He did that to her, he made her afraid.  She turned to Lisa.  “Would you like some bacon and eggs?”   
Lisa stood and walked over to the coffee maker.  “I think I’ll just have a bit of coffee.”

Norman sat back down and started to pick at his breakfast.

 

Sean had heard everything, standing back down the hallway where they couldn’t see him.  He came walking into the kitchen.  Riley looked up and smiled.  “Good morning, beautiful,” he said, kissing her cheek.  He turned to Lisa, “Good morning, Lisa.”   
“Good morning, Sean.”

He turned to get his coffee and greeted Norman only with, “Reedus.”

 

Norman dropped his fork.  “Riley, please tell me how I can fix this!”   
Sean turned to him.  “Maybe you can’t!”   
“Stay out of this Flanery!”   
“The fuck I will!  That’s my girlfriend!”   
“And you never would have met her if it wasn’t for me!  And what about the shit you did to her?  You fucking ABANDONED her, more than once, and she forgave you!”   
“I didn’t come at her like I was about to hit her!  How could you?  After all she’s been through?”

“STOP IT, BOTH OF YOU!!!”  Riley shouted.  Everyone turned.  She stood near the stove with her hands over her ears.  “My god, what is wrong with you two?”  The guys stayed silent.  “Okay,” she said, softly, “this is what we’re going to do.  Norman, you are going to go to work.  We’ll discuss this later.  Sean, go take a shower, and I’ll make you something to eat.  We are NOT discussing this right now.  For fuck’s sake, I haven’t even had coffee.”

Norman shoveled in his food, and took a few extra strength Tylenol with his coffee, saying only, “Thanks, Ri.”  He headed to his bedroom to get ready for work with Lisa following.  Once they were in his room and shut the door, Sean went to the bathroom to take his shower.  Lisa and Norman emerged minutes later, dressed for their day, and Riley gave Norman a travel mug with more coffee.  It was going to be a long and painful day for him.  His blue eyes connected with hers, and he just said, “Thanks, it’s appreciated.”  She just nodded.

Lisa gave Riley a hug and left as well, telling Riley to call her again if he got out of hand.

 

Sean came out a few minutes after they left.  Riley gave him some bacon, and asked, “How do you want your eggs?  Up, over, or scrambled?”   
“Riley, honey, we need to talk about this,” he said gently.

“Scrambled it is,” she said, cracking three eggs in a bowl quickly and beating them with a fork.  She took the milk out of the refrigerator and poured some in the bowl with a little salt and pepper, and beat it a bit more, then poured it in the pan.  Sean just let her.  She would eventually have to stop cooking.

Finishing with his scrambled eggs, she put them on his plate and immediately started to clean up.  Dishes in the dishwasher, then she grabbed a broom.   
“Riley, what are you doing?”   
“It’s Monday.  Monday is when I sweep the kitchen and bathrooms and clean the windows.  I have a system.”

Those were the very words she‘d used when he caught her trying to clean the house after her first attack.  He took the broom out of her hand and led her over to the table, sitting her down.  “Ri, we need to talk about this.”   
“No, we don’t.  I need to talk to Norman when he gets home,  But right now, I don’t want to talk about it.”  Sean sighed, running a hand through his hair.  So damn stubborn, that girl.

Riley said, “Look, let me take care of the things here like I always do.  Maybe we can talk later.  I just don’t want to right now, ok?”

“Okay, baby.”

 

Sean stayed out of her way as she did her puttering around, mainly just watching TV.  Riley took her shower and swept the kitchen and bathrooms, then cleaned the windows.  She sat at the kitchen table and made a grocery list.  “Sean, I need to go shopping, do you want to come?”   
“Sure thing.”

They climbed into Herbie and were on their way.  Sean couldn't help but remember when they’d gone grocery shopping after her first attack, when Kevin had left that note on her cart.  He reminded himself that Kevin was dead, and Riley was ok.  He pushed the cart as they went up and down the aisles quietly.  He knew he had a little smile on his face - she was just so damn cute.  God, he loved her.

 

After getting home and unpacking the groceries, she finally agreed to talk to him about what had happened the night before.

“Look,” she began, “he feels like shit about it.”   
“As he should.”   
“Yes, but I don’t believe for one minute that he would have actually hurt me.  He was getting in my face, but I don’t think he was going to grab me, or, god forbid, hit me.”   
“He was out of line.”   
“Yes.  Extremely so.  However, he’s also our best friend.  I am not ending my friendship with him over that.  And I don’t think you should either.”   
“How can you forgive him so easily?  After all you’ve been through, for him to do that?”   
“Sean, I forgave you.  He yelled at me and got in my face, once.  You abandoned me twice, and I needed you.  I forgave you.  I can forgive him, too.”   
Sean hated that.  She didn’t like having to play that card, but it was the truth. And he knew she was right.  He pulled her to him and put his arms around her, saying, “You really do have the kindest heart, babygirl.”

 

Norman came home just as dinner was ready.  He walked into the kitchen, where Riley and Sean were setting the table, holding a bouquet of sunflowers.  Sean looked at him and muttered, “Nice touch.  Buying your way back into her good graces?”

Without even thinking about it, Norman sarcastically said, “No, these are for you.  They didn’t have any asshole flowers so I got you sunflowers.”

Riley started giggling.  Both guys looked at her as the absurdity of what Norman said sank in, and they started to laugh also.  Norman walked over and handed her the flowers.  “I’m not trying to buy my way into your good graces.   I’m just….I can’t say I’m sorry enough, Ri.”   
She looked at him and asked, “How was it today at the set?”   
He leaned against the counter and closed his eyes.  “Hot and loud.  So very loud.  We had to do explosions.  And I was hung over.  I thought my head would explode.  I threw up a few times and felt better and yet, still crappy.”

“Well I made homemade chicken soup for dinner.”   
“You are a saint.  Are...are we okay?”   
“We will be.  I’m still going forward with my book.  And I will eventually be moving out, probably sooner, rather than later.  You need to be ok with that.  You can’t expect me to give up something like this in exchange for taking care of you for the rest of our lives.  I was never going to stay here forever.”   
“I know.  And I am so so sorry, Ri.  I encouraged you then turned around and….did what I did.  All I could think was that you were going to leave me, that you didn’t care.”   
Riley was quiet, then said softly, “I do care.  A lot.  But I need to have a life too.”   
She walked over to where Norman was and put her arms around him.  “It’s time to let go, dad.”   
He chuckled and put his arms around her as well, kissing the top of her head.  “I will sweetie.  But I don’t have to like it.”

 

Sean was watching all this from across the room.  Norm was hurting, that’s why he lashed out.  If he hadn’t gotten drunk, he would have kept it in check.  Norman had spent many years making friends on various movie sets, people who swore they were best friends….and a lot had left him by the wayside as they went on to bigger and better things, practically acting like they didn’t even know him.  Sean was one of the few who had stuck around.  Norman hated people leaving him, he always had.  He was independent, but he still needed friends, and he and Riley had become so close over the last 2+ years.  It wasn’t that he didn’t want her to be successful...he was afraid she’d leave him behind.

Norman looked over at Sean.  “What about you?” he asked.  “How do I make it up to you?”  Sean looked at Riley, then said, “You don’t have to.  We’re good.  You’re still my brother, buddy.”  Norman walked over and hugged Sean, and Sean said in his ear, “I get it.”   
“Thanks, man.”   
“Don’t do it again.”   
“Never.”

 

Riley watched the exchange with a smile.  “Are we ready for homemade chicken soup?”

Norman smiled.  “Yep.  I’m gonna miss this.”


	55. Chapter 55

Sean and Riley headed to bed early.  She asked him, “Are you sure you don’t want me to go to the airport, too?  I know you have to take back your rental car, but I could follow in Herbie.  I could walk you in and wait for you when you go through security.”   
“No, there’s no point babygirl.  Besides, you’ll be over in 5 days.  It’ll be ok.  I’ll text when I get there, when I land, and when I get home, I promise.”

 

He rubbed her feet for a little bit, keeping his promise to do it whenever he saw her, then they curled up in bed, putting on a movie.  Riley started to giggle, then she couldn’t stop.  Sean looked at her.  “What’s so funny?”   
“I saw you looking at your spot at the table tonight.”   
Sean smiled.  He had started sitting in the spot where he ate Riley’s pussy that one night.  “I’m drawn by the smell, what can I say?”   
Riley was horrified.  “You can smell me there?”   
He started laughing.  “Nah, babe, I’m just teasing.”   
“Bastard.”   
He rolled over on top of her.  “Can I make it up to you?”   
“I do love the way you make things up to me….”

 

Sean just looked at her for a long moment.  That sweet little face.  He asked her, “When you get famous, will you still love me?”  He was only half-joking, and Riley caught it.   
“Sean, I will always love you.  I tried to stop back when….you know.  And I couldn’t.  I wanted to hate you, but I couldn’t.  You’re stuck with me.”   
That sounded great to Sean, being stuck with Riley.

He dipped his head down, gently rubbing his nose against hers, then gently pressing his lips against hers.  He parted his lips and she did as well, and Sean slid his tongue into her mouth.  She always tasted so sweet, inside and out.

He broke the kiss long enough to pull her tank top off over her head and dropped it on the floor.  Riley lifted her hips so he could pull off her panties, then he stood and pulled off his boxer briefs, climbing back into bed with her quickly and kissing her again and again.  

He slid into her easily, and she wrapped her legs around him, sighing gently.  Looking down on her, her big beautiful eyes on his, and those sweet lips curved into a small smile, he felt like his heart would burst.  She was his. He didn’t want to leave her the next morning, but he had too.  He needed to go home and clean up his place to get it ready for her.  It had been closed up for 7 weeks, it was probably stale.  He should get some flowers, too, she loved flowers so much. What else?  Wine.  She wasn’t a big wine drinker, but she had a few that she liked, he should pick them up…..   
“Earth to Sean?”   
“Hmm?” he hadn’t realized that he had stilled inside of her.

“You okay?  We don’t have to do this if you aren’t into it right now,” Riley told him.   
Sean dropped his head into her shoulder.  “I’m sorry, baby. I was just thinking about all the stuff I wanted to do before you came to visit….to make it nice for you,” he told her, lifting his head and looking at her.   
Riley smoothed his hair back.  “If you’re there, that’s plenty nice for me.”

Sean started moving inside of her again.  He couldn’t believe he’d actually distracted himself...and during sex!  She deserved better than that!  Their time was limited.  She deserved his undivided attention when they were together.

He lifted one of her legs up onto his shoulder and started to fuck her harder.  She closed her eyes and whispered, “Just like that.”   
“You like that, Riley?” he whispered back.  They were being quiet as Norman was still awake.  “Do you like how deep I get when I pull your leg up like that?”   
“You know I do.”

 

He lowered her leg and flipped them over so she was on top.  “Ride me, baby.  Show me what you can do.”   
Riley leaned forward, grabbing the headboard, and putting her nipples right in Sean’s face.  He started sucking on them, making Riley hiss out, “Fuck!”  

She was riding him furiously, glad the bedsprings weren’t squeaky.  “Sean...Sean...Sean…” she was chanting softly.

“You gonna cum, girl?”

“So close…”   
“Open those eyes, and look at me, girl,” he hissed.

She did, and saw the world.  He commanded her, “Cum for me RIGHT NOW!”

 

Riley exploded.  Her back arched, head thrown back….silently.  Sean followed as soon as her saw her, managing to choke out, “Riley…”

He looked up at her, her sweet body twitching with the last bits of her orgasm.  She finally looked down at him, and he said, “Come down here, gorgeous.”   


He slid out of her and she rested in her spot on his side, head over his heart, telling him, “I wish you didn’t have to go.  But you know what’s weird?  We’ve seen each other more in the past month than any other time.”   
“I know baby.”

He DID know.  He needed to fix this.  When Riley had her meltdown, she had said that it wasn’t fair that they saw each other for three days every two weeks, and she was right.  It wasn’t fair, and it wasn’t enough.  But now Riley was truly financially secure.  And who knew how much cash she had socked away from working for Norman?  Granted, she’d had to pay huge co-pays and deductibles on her insurance both times she got attacked.  He knew it had taken a huge chunk of her money, but that was long ago.

 

Was it time to ask Riley to stay?  She shifted in her sleep, putting her ice cold toes on his warm leg.  He grimaced, but stayed silent.  He knew the only cure for cold toes was a warm leg, and he was happy to provide.  

 

He woke up early, waking Riley as he’d promised, although he wouldn’t let her make him breakfast.  It was 5 a.m.  He took a shower, packed his things, and kissed her goodbye.  Her eyes filled with tears, and he reminded her, “Just five days, sweetheart.  Shortest time we’ve ever had to wait.”  As he pulled his car out of the driveway, he saw her looking out the front window, looking so despondent.  He gave her a smile and a wave, and pulled away, his heart breaking.

 

Norman woke up to Riley sitting on the couch in her jammies looking sad.  “He’s already gone?” he asked.

“Yeah.  Early flight.”

“You okay?”   
“I’ll live.  I made you breakfast.  It’s in the oven.”

Norman opened the oven and took out the plate.  “Waffles?  Well this is a treat!  I don’t deserve you, Riley.”   
“Sure you do.  I knew I wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep.  So I kept busy.”

 

He left the table and sat next to her on the couch, putting his arm around her.  “He loves you, girl.”   
“I know.”   
“Then why so glum?”

“Because at some point, I’m going to have to choose between my boyfriend and my best friend.”   
“Choose him, Ri.”  Her head snapped around to look at him.  “Make a life with him.  Choose love.  You deserve that much.  Yeah, I’d love for you to stay here forever, but we both know that’s not going to happen.  If it comes up….WHEN it comes up, choose him.  He’d do anything for you.  I know he’ll make you happy.   And that’s all I want for you.”

With that, Norman got up and went over to eat his waffles, and Riley started her day.  

 

Later that afternoon, Sean Facetimed her.  “Hey pretty girl!”   
“Hi Seanie!  I miss you!”   
“Aw, I miss you, too.  Just wanted to let you know that we have an appointment with the lawyer on Monday from 2 - 4, okay?”   
“Two hours?  Will it really take that long?”   
“Well he’s gotta go over everything with a fine-toothed comb, baby.  I don’t think they’ll cheat you, but we need to make sure you’re getting the best deal possible.”

“Ugh.  Okay.  I promise to bring something respectable to wear.”   
“Ri, you’ll be fine.  This guy is an entertainment lawyer.  He has seen some freaky people in his line of work.  Someone normal like you will be a refreshing change for him.  Also, check your email, babe.  Ghia sent both of us some mockups for possible covers.”   
“Why did she send them to you?”   
“Because one of them had pics pulled from the Disneyland pics.  One of the selfies I took.  I’m okay with it if you are.  And if you don’t want that one, it’s okay.”

“Alright, I’ll take a look.”

 

Sean ended the call and Riley got online.  A couple of the covers looked cheesy as hell, like some kind of love story.  Hell no.  This was a true story and although she and Sean fell in love, it wasn’t a romance novel.  She flicked through a couple of images, that were okay.  Finally she found one that she liked.  It said in a lovely font “Sunflowers and Second Chances” then in a smaller script, “An Incredible True Story of Survival, Redemption, and A Second Chance at Life and Love”.  It was a black background with sunflowers and sunflower petals sprinkled on it, a picture of her and Sean at Disneyland, mouse ear hats and all, back when she finally outed herself.  It also had a picture of her kissing Winnie the Pooh on his nose.  Yes.  YES.  She okayed that one and sent it back to Ghia, then texted Sean, telling him, “I picked the one with the pictures of us and me and my one true love, Winnie the Pooh.”

He texted back, “I know you’re only with me because he’s a bear.  Those kind of relationships never work out.”

Riley chuckled and got back to work.

 

The five days passed faster than either of them thought, and Sunday morning, Norman took Riley to the airport.  Taking her seat in first class, she relaxed and slept most of the way.  She deplaned in L.A., and jumped into Sean’s arms at the luggage carousel.  They waited impatiently for her bag to come down the line, both fidgeting.  As soon as it came, Sean grabbed it and Riley and speed walked to the car.   
Riley laughed and said, “Anxious?”   
“You have no idea!”

 

Driving down the freeway, he looked over at Riley’s legs in her cutoff shorts.  Smiling he said, “Undo your shorts, angel.”   
“Why?”

He shot her a look.   
“Um, okay….did you want me to take them off?”   
“Nope, just undo them for me.”  Riley did as she was told.

Sean reached over with his right hand and slid it down the front of her shorts, inside her panties.   
“SEAN!  You’re driving!  You can’t….oh god….”   
His smile got even bigger.  He let his fingers gently circle her clit then dipped down inside of her to collect some of her wetness.  “Lean your seat back a bit, babygirl.”

She tilted it back a little ways.  Perfect.  Now he had more room to maneuver.  They hit a bit of traffic, and he was never so glad to have tinted windows.  The traffic started moving again and he glanced over at Riley, writhing in the passenger seat, making the sweetest little sounds.  He sped up his fingers on her clit.  Her ankles were crossed, but her knees were pointed in opposite directions.  Her eyes were closed, and her hips were moving against his hand.  Each thrust of her hips was accompanied by a small moan.

“Does that feel good, sweetheart?”

“Mmmm...yeah...so good...don’t stop…”

 

Sean sped up his fingers on her clit more, and Riley let out a loud moan, reaching her arm back and grabbing the headrest.  Her breathing quickened, and Sean knew she was close.  Without ever breaking his rhythm, he pulled over into a turnout area, turned on his emergency flashers, unbuckled his seatbelt, and slid close to Riley, and switched hands.  He whispered in her ear, “You gotta cum for me babygirl, I need a taste, need it NOW.”

Riley’s back arched as she grabbed his wrist, crying out, “Oh god, oh god, oh god!”  Sean encouraged her, “Yes, babygirl, YES!  That’s it!”

She convulsed a few more times, then collapsed against the seat, spent.  Sean slid his hand lower, gently sliding two of his fingers in her and swirling them for a moment.  “Open your eyes, angel,” he whispered.  “I want you to look.”   
She watched as he gently pulled his fingers out of her, glistening with her wetness.  “So wet, Riley, look at that.” He ran a fingertip along her bottom lip.  She ran her tongue over it, then he slid a finger into her mouth and she sucked it clean, watching his eyes turn dark.  “Dirty little bitch,” he told her and she smiled as he cleaned off the other finger.  He closed his eyes as he did so, like it was the best thing he’d ever tasted.  Riley asked, “Where are we?”   
Sean chuckled, “About a mile from the house on a highway turnout because I couldn’t wait to taste you.”  He turned off the flashers, buckled his seatbelt, and pulled back into traffic.

“Want some road head?”   
Sean was already rock hard but told her no.  “Baby, you give epic head, and I would not say no once we get home.  But there is no way I could keep my eyes on the road if my cock was in your mouth.  It was difficult enough with what I just did.”

 

They pulled up to the house minutes later, and Riley happily opened the door with her key, making Sean smile.  He walked in, set down her suitcase, and just as he turned to ask her what she wanted to do about dinner, she slammed him against the wall, and her tongue was in his mouth.  Sean did not put up a fight.  As Riley plundered his mouth with her tongue, she undid his pants, then dropped to her knees.  She slid him in her mouth as far as she could, which was getting to be just a tiny bit farther each time, and started sucking him off.  

Sean’s eyes rolled back in his head, she really was phenomenal.  He whispered out, “Won’t take long baby.”

Riley took her mouth off of him long enough to say, “When you get ready to come, let me know, and look at me.”   
“Anything you want, baby.”

He unbuttoned and opened his shirt to play with his own nipples.  Buried in the warm suction of her hot little mouth, it was only minutes later when he finally choked out, “Gonna cum, Ri!”  He looked down at her like she had asked.

 

Riley pulled her mouth off of him, opened it wide with her tongue sticking out, and Sean watched as every ropey jet shot into her mouth and onto her tongue.  If he hadn’t been the one cumming, the sight of it alone would have done the trick.  He was pretty sure he shot extra from it, yelling out, “AHH!  ARGH!  FUCK YES, BABYGIRL!!!”  Sean was trying to focus on her instead of letting his eyes roll back into his head for a week or two.  When he had finally emptied his balls, she turned up her head to him so he could see her mouth full of his cum.  Then as he watched, trying to catch his breath, she swallowed and smiled up at him.

  
Riley was going to kill him, he was sure of it, and he looked forward to it.


	56. Chapter 56

Sean weakly pulled her up to him and kissed her, slipping his tongue into her mouth, and tasting his cum still flavoring her tongue.  He sagged against the wall, resting his head back against it.  “God damn, baby.  That was….holy fuck.”

Riley giggled.  “Glad you liked it.”

“Where the hell did you get that idea?”   
Riley shrugged.  “Guys are more visual than girls.  Thought you might like to see it.”   
“Babygirl, you never cease to amaze me.”

He kissed the top of her head and threw an arm around her neck.  “Let’s take a nap, angel.  I need to recharge.  Fuck, that was good.”

 

They undressed and climbed into bed.  Sean was out in seconds, but Riley had slept on the plane, so she was wide awake.  Laying with her head on Sean’s chest, she started thinking.  Could she live here if he asked her again?  The climate was wonderfully agreeable.  Winter in Southern California did not mean snow….it barely meant rain.  In Georgia or New York, it meant snow, and sometimes lots of it.  A couple of times she and Norman got snowed in trying to go from Georgia to New York, all flights grounded.  Here it was beautifully sunny and mild.  They weren’t far from the beach, although they hadn’t been yet.  Riley stifled a giggle as she imagined tooling around fancy L.A. in Herbie.  Sean stirred, and mumbled, “Love ya, Ri,” in his sleep and her heart melted.  She snuggled up against him and listened to his heart beating strong and steady.

After about an hour, he began to stir, his eyes slowly opening and focusing down on her.  “Hey beautiful,” he told her, giving her a sleepy smile.  “I really love waking up and having you be the first thing that I see.”

Riley stretched up and planted a gentle kiss on his neck, right over the tiny, almost invisible scar from the mole he’d had removed all those years ago.  He closed his eyes and savored the moment.  “Mmm, Riley, you are just too sweet to me.”  He could lay there all night, except that his stomach growled loudly, kind of ruining the moment, and Riley burst out laughing.  He told her, “It seems man cannot live on Riley alone.  How does Chinese take out sound?”

 

Sean was surprised that when he ordered it and left to pick it up, Riley didn’t even bat an eye.  She wasn’t afraid or even nervous about him leaving.  Later at his kitchen table as they gorged themselves on chow mein, potstickers, and egg rolls, Sean brought it up.  “I don’t want to jinx it,” he began, “but you were okay with me going to pick up food.  You were okay with me leaving and going somewhere without you.  You were ok with me...leaving you.”   
Riley looked at him confused for a moment, then what he was saying seemed to sink in.  She smiled.  “Yeah, I guess I was!”

“You weren’t nervous at all?”   
“No, I didn’t even give it a second thought.”

He wondered if this was a turning point for her.  Maybe the trauma was finally over: Kevin’s AND his.  Deciding that discretion was the better part of valor, he left it at that.  They didn’t need to pick it apart.  Not now.  Not tonight.

Sean reached into the bottom of the bag and pulled out two fortune cookies, holding them out for Riley to choose.  She picked one and they both cracked them open and looked at their fortunes.

“What does your say, Ri?”   
“You go first.”   
“Okay.  ‘Follow your heart and you will find happiness.’”  He didn’t say it, but he knew he was going to ask her to stay.   
“Mine says, ‘Don’t be afraid to take a chance when the opportunity of a lifetime appears.’”  Riley looked across the table at him.  

She could tell by the look on his face exactly what he was thinking.  He said, “Riley-”   
“Don’t.  Whatever you’re going to say, just don’t.  Not now.  Not tonight.  Please.  Let’s get my contract taken care of first.  Please, Sean.  Let’s get this out of the way and get it going.”

Sean wasn’t very happy about that, but he understood.  Book first.  Everything else after.  But he would have his say, he would ask her before she went back to Georgia...IF she went back.  If she said yes, they could just send for her stuff.

“I was just going to tell you that I love you.”

Riley smiled.  She knew he was lying out of his ass, but let it go.  “I love you too, Seanie.”   
  


Sean started putting away the leftovers and cleaning up while she watched him, playing with her pendant.  “You know,” he told her, “you are the only person who has ever called me ‘Seanie’.  If anyone else did it, I’d knock them out.  Coming from you, it’s fucking adorable.”

Riley replied, “Only because you like me.”

He came over leaning down into her face and putting his hands on the arms of her kitchen chair, effectively trapping her.  “You’re goddamn right I do.”  He didn’t kiss her, didn’t move, didn’t do anything for the longest time, just looked at her….like he was memorizing her face.  Every pore, every eyelash, every freckle.  In truth, he could draw her face in the dark.

 

Getting nervous, she squirmed a bit in her chair, and said, “Sean?”

He stood up and told her,  “Don’t move.  Stay right there.”

Jumping up, he ran and locked the living room door and turned off the living room light.  Walking back into the kitchen, he lifted her up in his arms as if she weighed nothing, and carried her upstairs, turning off the kitchen light on the way out.

 

He sat her down on the bed and knelt down before her, unlacing her Chuck Taylors and putting them aside.  As he took off her little crew socks, he noticed they had a ring of kitty silhouettes around the ankles.  Could she possibly be any more adorable?

“Sean, what-”   
He cut her off by placing a finger on her lips.  Standing he kicked off his shoes and socks as well, then pulled her to her feet.  He pulled her little black tank top off over her head.  She looked at him with those big eyes of hers.  Slightly confused, but completely trusting.  Pulling his own shirt over his head, he watched as she started to move her hand to his chest then stopped, looking at him.  He gave her a smile and a nod.  She ran her hand through his chest hair.  She loved his chest hair, and hated when it had to be shaved or waxed for a movie.  He was a grown man.  As such, it was normal for him to have chest hair.  It wasn’t normal for him to be as smooth as a prepubescent boy.

Sean sat on the bed and pulled her to stand between his legs.  He unbuttoned and unzipped her cutoffs, and slowly pulled them down, helping her step out of them.

Riley stood in front of him in the sexiest red and black lingerie he’d ever seen.  He pulled her against him, resting his cheek against her tummy.   _ ‘Please,’   _ he begged silently.   _ ‘Please stay with me.  I need you.’   _ Riley had no idea what was going on in his head, but it was plain that he was distressed.  She just held him tightly to her, and he turned and placed a few kisses on her little flat belly.

She reached down and turned his face up to hers.  Very softly, she asked him, “Are you okay?”  He gave her that sweet, boyish smile and nodded.  Standing, he took off his own pants, and stood in front of her in his boxer briefs.  Wordlessly, he traced along the top of her bra with one finger, then using both hands, ran them up and over her shoulders.  Easily finding the hook in the back, he quickly undid it and slid the straps off of her arms, dropping it to the floor.  He swooped her up in his arms again, gently depositing her on the bed.

Hooking his fingers into the waistband of those sexy panties, she lifted her hips and he slid them down her body, then took off  his own and climbed into bed with her.  He lay there gently stroking her face and kissing her.  

Reaching down to her silky folds, he found that she was already wet.  She always got so wet for him so quickly, it kind of blew his mind.  Sean knew that girls were built differently.  It took them a while to get going.  Meanwhile, some guys could just see a pretty girl walk by, and their dick would stand up to get a better view.  Riley sure as hell did that to him.  He guided his cock into her, but stopped after only entering the head, then started to pump only that small amount in and out of her.  Riley wrapped her legs around him and tried to pull him in deeper, but Sean was much stronger than she.  Admittedly, he was gritting his teeth, he wanted nothing more than to sink into her, but he kind of loved teasing her like this.

“What’s wrong, angel?”

“More, please more,” she begged.

He slid in just a tiny bit more, watching her writhe and pout beneath him; again trying to force him in deeper.

“Sean, please!”   
“Please what, baby?” he asked feigning innocence.  “What do you need?”

“Please fuck me, Sean!”   
“I am, Riley.”

 

He slid his arms up under her shoulders getting a good grip.  “Tell me what you want angel, tell me…”

Riley pretty little face was screwed up in frustration, eyes squeezed shut.  “Please,” she begged him, “give me all of you.  I need your cock!”   
  


That was what he was waiting for.  He slammed into her, hard and deep.  Her eyes flew open at the sudden intrusion, then slid shut.  Sean’s face was buried in her neck, and he was jackhammering into her.  He was slightly afraid of hurting her, but all the noises she was making were good.

“Harder,” she breathed.   
“Harder?” Sean asked.  He didn’t know how much harder he could pound her.     
“Please,” she begged, the need evident in her voice.

 

Sean grabbed her legs, putting them both on his shoulders, then sitting back on his heels.  He pulled her up with him, so she was on his lap, but her legs were still up on his shoulders, and gravity took care of the rest.

He felt his cock nestle deeply inside her and paused for breath.  She was gripping the top of his biceps, effectively folded in half.  If she hadn’t been so tiny, he could never have done what he was about to. He grabbed her about the waist and started pistoning up into her.  He felt her slam down on him and give out a cry.  He stilled inside her.

 

He was in deeply.

Was he hurting her?

 

He pulled back to look at her.

“Ri?”   
“Don’t…..fucking….stop.”   
“Riley, am I hurting you?”

“No…. want more….”   
  


Sean was confused.  He tried to slide her legs off his shoulders, but she hooked her ankles together behind his neck.   
“Don’t you fucking dare,” she all but growled at him.

He was torn.  He was sure he was hurting her.  Should he stop?  His cock was still throbbing inside her, begging for release.  COULD he stop?

Riley whimpered out, “Please.”

 

He started ramming into her again, watching her eyes roll back into her head in ecstasy.  He loved her, but he was going to spend his life trying to figure her out.

 

Riley’s hands curled around his biceps, her nails biting into his skin.  Her eyes opened and locked with his.  Her legs started to shake, and she managed to spit out, “Gonna cum,” before she exploded.

Sean looked down where they were joined, and watched as Riley squirted out two small jets onto him, screaming his name.  Holy shit.  That’s what was going on, he hit her G spot.  No wonder she freaked out.

Looking at that set Sean off.  He spurted into her several times, squeezing his eyes shut, gritting his teeth, and muttering, “Take it all, dirty bitch, every drop….”

 

Finally spent, he opened his eyes and looked at Riley, she was leaning back in his arms, eyes closed, legs still giving off twitches here and there.

“Open your eyes, angel.”   
Her eyes slowly opened and focused on him.  She gave a small grimace and said softly, “My legs….”   
Sean gently slid her legs off of his shoulders, and slowly laid her back down on the bed.  He moved next to her, and gently massaged her hips.  He looked up and saw her eyes tracking him.

 

“Did I hurt you at all, Riley?”   
“Uh uh.”   
“Ok.  I was sure I did.  Well, until you squirted all over my lap,” he smiled mischievously.

“Sorry.  Couldn’t really talk when I was already so far gone.  That’s never happened except with your fingers.”   
“Maybe we opened the floodgates,” he said with a little smile.  “Pun definitely intended.”

 

They laid side by side, looking at each other.  Sean watched as Riley’s blinks got longer and longer.  “Come here, babygirl,” he said, pulling her to his side.  She was out in minutes.

  
Sean lay in the dark, stroking her hair.  He whispered, “Stay with me.”


	57. Chapter 57

The next day, they swam in the pool and then watched a movie, killing time before their appointment with the lawyer.  When they time finally came, Riley put on the same dress she had worn when she met Ghia.  She grabbed her contract which she had kept in a simple manilla envelope.  Sean stopped her.  “I know you worry about ‘looking professional’, so I uh….I got you a little something….” he told her as he walked to the hall closet.

“Sean,” Riley began, “you know you don’t have to...”

He pulled a tan satchel out.  It looked absolutely lovely.   
Sean smiled at her reaction, telling her, “It’s a laptop bag/briefcase.  The guy at the store said it was one of the best sellers for women.”  He opened it up to show her the inside.  “See how this pocket is padded on one side?  It’s for if you have an iPad, so you don’t damage the screen.  And this little pouch here is for your keys.  It makes them easy to find and they won’t be jostled around where they could scratch your laptop.  The guy said that because of all the pockets and compartments, women are able to put all the stuff from their purse in here, too.  The shoulder strap is adjustable or you can take it off if you rather carry it by the handle.  They had it in black, but that just seemed so overpowering, so I got you the tan….” she hadn’t said a word, and he looked up at her.”Do...do you like it, Ri?”   
She gave him a huge smile.  “I love it.  This is absolutely perfect.”  She put her contract in it, and then emptied the contents of her purse into the compartments, and shouldered the bag.  Sean smiled at her.  “Very professional.”

 

They drove to a fancy high rise building in the Financial District of L.A.  It was one of those concrete and glass monstrosities you see in every big city, with an underground parking garage with a security guy in a little box.  Riley wrinkled her nose at it and Sean laughed.  “Yeah, pretty tacky, but it’s not like this is his building.  He just owns a floor for his business.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll behave.”   
“I never doubted, pretty girl.”

 

They parked and took the elevator up to the 16th floor.  As soon as the doors opened, there was a big receptionists desk with three workers behind it.  On the wall behind them in big silver letters, it said, “David J. Michaelson” then in slightly smaller letters underneath it said “Attorney-At-Law”.   They walked up  just as one of the workers was hanging up the phone.  Sean had made the appointment in Riley’s name, although he knew David.  The receptionist asked, “How can I help you today?”

“Um...I’m Riley.  Riley Maxwell.  I have an appointment at 2:00…” 

The receptionist looked at her computer, and as they were a few minutes early, told them to have a seat in the waiting room.  They sat down and Riley started bouncing her knee nervously.  Sean reached over and gently placed a hand on the knee, making Riley stop.  He told her, “There’s nothing to be nervous about.  I’ve known David for years, he’s a really nice guy.”  Riley just nodded.

 

After a minute, the receptionist they had checked in with came for them.  They followed her down a short hallway to a set of double doors which she opened wide as she ushered them in.  It was David’s office, and it was bigger than the trailer Riley had lived in back before she’d moved in with Norman.  It was a corner office, of course, with glass walls overlooking the city, and a huge desk. The man sitting behind it stood, telling the receptionist, “Thank you, Kristin.”

He was a big guy, tall and broad shouldered, with graying hair at his temples, and a smile that looked like a chiclet convention.  He smiled at Riley, then told Sean with a slight Southern twang to his voice, “Well you told me she was special, but you didn’t tell me she was such a pretty little thing!”     
He came out from behind the desk and him and Sean hugged, clapping each other on the back.  He then approached Riley, telling her, “Hello, Miss Maxwell.  Sean has told me all about you, his ‘Georgia peach’.  It’s a pleasure to be of service to you.”  He held out his hand and she shook it, smiling.  She liked him, and told him, “Please, call me Riley.”

“Please,” David said, “both of you kids have a seat.  Now Riley, I understand you got a contract for a book, and you were just needing someone to look it over.  Kind of need to decipher some legalese, and make sure they don’t screw you, right?”

“Yes sir.”  Riley opened up her bag and pulled out her contract handing it to him.  As he opened up the envelope she had it in, he asked her, “What kind of book is it, if you don’t mind me asking?  Fiction?  Romance?  Horror?”   
Riley said, “Horror,” at the same time that Sean said, “Non-fiction.”  David paused at pulling the contract out of the envelope.  Sean said, “It’s a true story of something horrible that Riley went through.”

David looked at the sweet girl sitting across from him, with a scar visible at the neck hole of her dress.  He asked her, “Is that how you got that scar, miss?”   
“That and several others like it.  I was….I was raped and tortured, and almost killed.”

David had pulled the contract out and was putting on some reading glasses when she said that, and he froze, eyes shooting over to Sean, then back to Riley.   
“I am damn sorry to hear that, Miss Riley.  Did they catch the guy?”   
“Well, no.  Because I killed him.  In self defense.”   
David nodded his head.  “Well, good riddance to bad rubbish.”

Sean decided to change the subject.  “I think the main thing we need is to make sure that they don’t edit out anything without Riley’s ok.”   
Riley nodded and continued, “I understand that they may need to edit it for clarity or length, but I just don’t want the story itself changed.”   
David nodded again.  “Alright, well let’s see what they want to do here…” and started going over the contract.

 

It turns out that Ghia had planned ahead for that in the contract, granting Riley “final cut” so to speak.  Any and all changes were to be approved by Riley, via email.  The amount per book she would receive was more than fair, according to both David and Sean.  There was even a clause in there that Riley had to approve going to any conventions/book signings/talk shows/etc before they were booked.  When David explained that, he peered at her over the top of his reading glasses.  “Young lady, they must really believe in you to give you so many concessions.  This is an amazing contract.”  Riley looked over at Sean, and he had never looked prouder.   

Two hours later, they were done.  The contract wasn’t just fair, it was very much in Riley’s favor.  All that was left was for her to sign and date it, and get it to Ghia.  As they left, David told her, “Good luck with your book.  I hope it does well.”   
She smiled at him, “So do I.  And thank you for squeezing us in like this.  I know you must be a very busy man.”   
David scoffed at that.  “That’s why I have a bunch of people working here.  Any friend of Sean’s is a friend of mine.  I wanted to be able to give you my own personal attention.”  He held out his hand, and she shook it as he told her, “Miss Riley Maxwell, it has been a pleasure to work for you today.  I truly mean that.”  Sean told her, “Could you wait out in the lobby?  Just want to get a word with David.”  Riley left the office.  Sean thanked him again, and David said, “Son, you best wife that little lady.  She’d be good for you.”   
Sean smiled.   “Slow down! I'm still trying to convince her to move in with me.”   
“Oh, she will.  She looks at you like you hung the moon, always playing with that little necklace of hers with both of your names on it.  Don’t think that I missed that.”

Sean laughed.  “Of course you didn’t.  You’re a lawyer.”   
“What’s this book gonna be called?”   
“Sunflowers and Second Chances”.

David wrote it down on his pad.  “I’ll be sure to buy me a copy.”   
“Oh hell, Riley will probably send you one.  Signed even.”

 

Sean came out and got Riley, and they went into the parking garage and got in the car.  “You know,” Sean told her, “Ghia’s office isn’t far from here.  I could see if she’s in and we could drop it off.”   
“That’s a good idea.”

Sean called her and found that she was in, and would love to see them.  They made the drive quickly, with Sean taking side streets instead of the highway as the rush hour traffic was just starting.

Ghia was happy to see them, greeting them both with warm hugs.  “I understand you had your lawyer look over your contract?” Ghia said.

“Oh yes,” Riley said, pulling it out of her bag.  “I have it signed where it needed to be and dated.  All that’s left is for you to sign.”  Ghia signed it and gave Riley her copy.     
“Say,” Ghia said as Riley put her copy back in her bag.  “That’s a really nice bag!”   
“Sean got it for me as a present!” Riley told her proudly as Sean blushed.

 

They spent an hour with Ghia at her office. Ghia and Riley went over how Riley would get her edits and how to respond.  Ghia assured her that they understood that she still had a 9-to-5 job, and that she couldn’t always reply immediately.  If anything needed to be taken care of that absolutely could not wait, Ghia would call.  Riley had already sent her copies of the medical records to be included in the book, with things like phone numbers, addresses, and social security numbers blacked out.  Norman didn’t need to move or get a new phone number, and neither did Riley.  There were some pictures of her before and after her attack, as well as medical pics of some of her injuries.  And pictures of her and Sean together, her favorites.

 

Unable to get very far with the traffic, they stopped on the way at a little hole in the wall Italian restaurant.  The place was adorable, complete with checkered tablecloths, dim lighting, and a mural on the wall.  They had spaghetti and meatballs, and some wine.  It was just very relaxed and wonderful.  “We need to make this a regular place!” Sean said.  “I can’t believe it isn’t packed here, the food is fantastic!”

Sean paid the bill, then just before leaving, took a selfie with Riley for Instagram and Twitter.  He posted, “Just finished dinner with my Georgia peach at  Mama Julietta’s Italian Trattoria on Wilshire.  Hard to find and so worth it!  Great food!”  Maybe that would generate a little more traffic for them.

 

It was just after 6:30 when they finally got home.  Riley opened the door with her key, set down her bag, and flopped down on the couch.  It had been an incredible and busy day.  Sean  pulled off her little flats and started rubbing her feet, Riley giving him a tired smile, which he returned.

 

Sean took a deep breath. “Riley, we need to talk.”

 

Riley stiffened.  She never liked that phrase “we need to talk”.  It was usually bad.  Sean noticed and chuckled.  

“It’s nothing bad baby, I promise.”   
“O...kay…”   
  


Sean turned to her.  “I have a lot to say, so you need to let me say it all before you say anything, ok?”   
“Sure.”

He stood up and started to pace.  “You said more than once that you needed to finish the book.  Book first, everything else later.  And I agreed.  I need you here with me, Ri.  I feel like I’m dying without you.  The book is done.  All the edits and everything else you can do from here.  Please move in with me.  You said yourself that 3 days every two weeks isn’t enough, and it’s not.  And if you really think you can’t move here….then I’m coming to Senoia.  I’ll sell my house and we can get a place up there.  Live in the trailer park if we have to.”  He looked at Riley.  Her eyes were big.   
“You’d REALLY give up everything and live in Senoia?”  He’d said it at the penthouse, but she hadn’t imagined he was really serious.   
“If it’s what I need to do to be with you, then yes.”   
“You aren't moving to Senoia.”   
“Riley-” he began, but she cut him off.

“You are NOT moving to Senoia, and that’s final!”

“Riley, please, baby,” he said, his voice cracking.  “I love you.”   
“You aren’t moving to Senoia.  Because I’m moving in here with you.”


	58. Chapter 58

Sean looked at her.  “You’ll stay?”   
“Yes, but I have conditions.  They aren’t negotiable.”

Sean sat down next to her.  “How many and what kind of conditions are we talking about?”   
“Just two.  Number one: I am going back to Senoia and giving Norman a proper two weeks notice.  That means I work for him for two more weeks.”   
Sean was confused.  “Why?  That makes no sense.”   
“It makes perfect sense.  This gives him time to move Lisa in.  He hates being alone in that house, and he really hasn’t been since I moved in.  He loves Lisa, and I know he wants her there.  Plus I’m not going to just abandon him.”   
“But Ri, we could just send for your stuff.  You told me you don’t have any furniture or anything big.  It’s not like we need to get a Uhaul.”   
“Actually, we CAN’T just send for my stuff.  The reason why is condition number two.  Herbie.  That car is mine, and I’m not junking him or leaving him.  But the truth is he can’t make another cross country drive.  He needs a new engine and new tires.  I have the money to get it done, but the garage said it would take a week minimum.  I can’t be without a car for a week while working, so I just put it off.  He’s fine around town, but I wouldn’t even be sure of going all the way to Atlanta.”   
Sean thought.  “Well, I mean….weren’t you at one time going to trade him in for a newer car, Ri?  Back before….before I came back?”  He hated to even bring it up, and she could see that.

“Yeah, when all I could think of was getting away from everyone.  Starting over somewhere else.  Maybe being somebody else.  But I’m not running away anymore.  And remember, if that car hadn’t broken down in Senoia, we really never would have met.  That car knows shit.”   
He frowned.  “If it hadn’t broken down, you never would have met… ‘him’ either.”   
“Oh come on now.  Kevin fooled everyone.  Even Norman, and he’s a pretty good judge of people.  You aren’t really gonna blame my car for what Kevin did, are you?”

 

Sean smiled.  No, he couldn’t.  But they needed to figure out what to do.  She could get the car fixed, but that wouldn’t be fair to Norman, Riley couldn’t run any errands.  She loved that car, but how would they get it to California?  Normally he knew they could hire someone to drive it, but even if it could make the trip, Riley would never trust just anybody with Herbie…..

 

“I’ve got it!” Sean yelled, jumping up off the couch and scaring Riley.  “We’ll drive!”   
Riley looked at him.  “I just told you, Herbie can’t make the drive.”   
“No, no.  I’ll rent an SUV in Atlanta for a cross country road trip.  There are places that do that.  Drive it from Atlanta to L.A., and get a trailer to put Herbie on, like race car drivers do!  When we get settled here, we can get Herbie’s engine taken care of.  Even if you have to go somewhere while he’s getting fixed, we at least have cabs and shit.”

Riley thought it over and got a smile.  “Is that really possible?”   
“Let me make some calls.”

 

Sean spent the next hour calling different places about cross country rentals, what kind of cars they could get, and it they were allowed to attach vehicle trailers.

Riley got up and put on her bikini, walking past Sean to go outside for a while in the pool.  She turned to look into the house, and there he was, watching her through the doors, still on the phone, and a big smile on his face.  It was already getting dark out.  Riley floated on her back in the shallow end, looking up at the stars.

Sean came out in his swim trunks, and just stood at the door for a few minutes watching her float like a little mermaid princess.  David’s words echoed in his head: “Son, you best wife that little lady.”   _ ‘One step at a time,’   _ he reminded himself.   _ ‘This could blow up in our faces,’   _ he thought, although he didn’t really believe it.  

Walking out of the house, he walked into the water.  Riley stood up.     
“Aw,” Sean said, “I was hoping to surprise you.”   
“The waves gave you away.  You aren’t so ninja in the water.”   
“I need to work on that.”

 

They just stood looking at each other.  Everything had changed, and nothing had changed.  Riley stepped to him and wound her arms around his waist, placing her head against his chest.  Sean wrapped his arms around her and said, “I am going to make you so happy, angel.”

“You already do.”

 

Riley looked up at him with a smile, as she reached behind her back and undid her bikini top, flinging it onto the deck.  She untied her bikini bottoms with a tug to the knots on each side, and sent that flying through the air as well, with Sean smiling.  She walked past him, out of the pool and into the hot tub.  Sean got out of the pool as well and shucked his swim trunks, his dick standing up happily.   Riley giggled, and Sean shook his hips side to side, making it bob around ridiculously.  Stepping down into the hot tub, he told her, “You’re laughing at my manhood, woman.”   
“Your manhood is dancing around and making me laugh!”

 

Sean walked toward her until she was backed up against the wall.  Putting an arm on each side of her, he caged her in.  Leaning forward instead of kissing her, he gently ran the tip of his tongue across her bottom lip, making her shiver.  “I can’t wait to get you here permanently,” he breathed in her ear.  “Having you here will make everything worthwhile again.  Make my house a home.”

“Aw, Seanie.”   
“Never knew how unhappy I was here until you came and made me happy,” he said, running his hands along her water-slicked skin.  “I won’t have to worry about you flying back and forth.  And I won’t get depressed having to watch you walk down that hallway in the airport.  I hate that fucking hallway.”  He was kissing down her neck.   
“I do, too…”

He kissed down her chest to her pink nipples, sucking them into his mouth one at a time.  Riley grabbed his shoulders, digging her nails in.  Sean ran his tongue over her nipples, leaving them wet and glistening in the moonlight.  He pulled her against him, whispering, “I love you so much, Riley.  So much it hurts my heart when you aren’t here.”   
“Just a few more weeks, and I won’t leave you anymore.”

“God, I can’t wait.”

 

He walked backward, holding her hand, leading her to the stairs that went into the hot tub.  He had her go up one step, where she was only covered by the water up to mid-thigh.  Placing her hands on the little railing, he told her, “Bend over and hang on, little girl.”

Doing as she was told, Sean ran his hands up her thighs, over her ass, and up her back.  He leaned over, kissing the little freckle on the back of her shoulder.  Riley giggled and said, “You always kiss me in the same little spot.  How come?”   
“You have this little mole or maybe it’s a freckle there.”   
“I do?” she asked, trying to see it.   
“Yep.  I kiss it for luck, and because it’s cute, and because I really like kissing you anywhere I can.”

Riley blushed in the moonlight, and Sean’s heart melted.  She would be his cute babygirl forever.

 

He pressed his length up against her backside.  “You ready, little girl?”

“For you, always.”

Sean lined up his cock with her slick entrance and slid in, her walls hugging him tightly.  “Fuck, Riley!” he exclaimed.  “How are you always so damn tight?”

“Maybe I was built for you,” she said over her shoulder.

Sean stilled in her momentarily before whispering in her ear, “Maybe you were.  Maybe I was built for you, too,” he told her as he started to pump into her.

 

Riley moaned at the feeling.  “I think so, baby.  No one has ever made me feel like you do.”

Sean grabbed her hair and pulled her upright against his body.  He lifted her left leg onto the railing, and growled, “How do I make you feel, little girl?  Do I make you feel wet?  Do I make you soak your panties when you think about my cock?”  He thrust two fingers into her mouth and she sucked them obediently.  Pulling them out, he used them to rub her clit.  “Do you play with your clit when you think about me, Ri?  Do you touch yourself when you’re all alone?”  Wrapping one hand gently around her neck, he growled, “Answer me, Riley.”   
“YES!  Oh FUCK, yes!  I do all of those things!”

“Good girl, such a sweet girl,” he whispered in her ear. 

Suddenly he pulled out of her, earning a moan of frustration from Riley.  Spinning her around, he slammed his cock back into her, pulling one leg up on his shoulder, and balancing her ass on the railing.  

He could see Riley was nervous of falling or being dropped.  He stilled in her.  “I have you angel.  I won’t let you fall.  I promise you.”

Riley nodded, and relaxed and he started pounding her again.  “Show me, dirty girl,” he said, nose to nose with her.  “Show me how you play with your clit when I’m not there.”

Riley drew one of her hands from where she was holding on to his shoulders, and slid two fingers into Sean’s mouth.  He ran his tongue around them like they were candy, never taking his eyes off Riley.

She withdrew the fingers and lowered them to her clit, circling rapidly, breathing out, “Oh shit.”

 

Sean gave her a sharp smack on the ass.  “Dirty language, little girl.”  Riley moaned out, “Fuck yes!” and he smacked her again.  He watched her fingers speed up, and growled, “You are definitely getting a proper spanking before you go home,” giving her a few more rapid smacks for good measure.

He looked down, and Riley’s fingers were almost a blur, she was rubbing herself so furiously.  “I can’t hold back babygirl!” he cried out.

 

They came as the same time, Riley’s legs tightening around his shoulder and waist, as her pussy clenched rhythmically around his cock, practically milking his cum from him.  Riley was panting his name over and over, her body jerking.  Sean fought through his orgasm to keep his eyes on her, he loved watching what her body did. 

 

He lowered her leg from his shoulder, and slid his cock out.  Riley leaned against him, and he picked her up and sat down in the deeper area of the hot tub with her on his lap, rocking her gently.  

She wasn’t even gone, yet he couldn’t wait for her to come HOME, for the last time.  

Home for good.


	59. Chapter 59

Riley sat on Sean’s lap as he rocked her, her head on his shoulder.  She leaned forward and placed a sweet, gentle kiss on his neck.  He held her a bit tighter, and she told him, “I love all the naughty things we do together.”   
Sean chuckled.  “Me too, angel.  If I’m ever too rough or it’s too much, you tell me, ok?”   
“I will, I promise.”

 

They sat for a bit longer, and Sean asked, “You sleepy, little girl?”

“Mmm, yeah.”   
“Why don’t you go on in and get into bed.  I’ll be up in a few.”   
“Okay.”

He watched her stand and walk out of the hot tub naked, jiggling in all the right places.  She wrapped herself in a towel, picked her wet bathing suit up off the ground, and headed in, turning and giving Sean a little smile and wave.  He returned both and watched her head upstairs.  He heaved a happy sigh.  This girl.  She was going to be there permanently soon, and he couldn’t wait.  The two weeks he would have to wait would be the longest two weeks of his life, but it would be the last time.  Sean got out of the pool, shut down the house like he always did, and walked upstairs.  He had stayed out there longer than he thought, Riley had dried her hair, and it was fanned out on the pillow behind her.  She was curled up on her side, fast asleep.  He stood in the doorway watching her for the longest time before finally climbing in next to her and snuggling against her.

  
  


Riley was in pain.  Everything hurt. She was unable to open her eyes very much.  Why?  What was happening?  She managed to croak out, “Sean?”

A voice that she thought she’d never hear again told her, “Your ninja isn’t coming, bitch!”  No, it couldn’t be.  Kevin put his face close to hers, so she could see him, and said, “About damn time you woke up.  Choked you out, was worried you wouldn’t come back.  I wanted you to be awake and alert for when I bash your skull in.” He picked up a hammer and held it close to her face.  Riley was on her back tied to the table in the barn.  No no no!  She was with Sean!  She wasn’t here!  Kevin feinted towards her with the hammer several times, cackling like the maniac he was.  Riley had dreamt about everything!  Sean wasn’t there!  This couldn’t be happening!  She squeezed her swollen eyes shut, willing herself back with him.  “Oh no you don’t!” Kevin screamed.  “Open your eyes or I’ll cut your damn eyelids off!”  He pressed the tip of a knife painfully against her cheek, and she opened her eyes as much as her swollen lids would allow.  “That’s right bitch, I want you to see this coming!”  As the hammer came down to her face, she thrashed against her binds, and finally managed to scream, “SEAN!”

 

Sean was literally on top of Riley, holding her down, trying to wake her up.  “Riley!  Dammit girl!  WAKE UP RILEY!  OPEN YOUR EYES, BABY!”

 

She shocked awake so hard, she almost threw him off of her, and she was still screaming for him.   
“SEAN!  HELP ME!  SEAN!!!!!”   
“Baby!  God dammit!”  Unsure of what else to do, Sean did the one thing he never wanted to.  

He slapped Riley in the face.   
He hated himself for doing it, and he did it as gently as he could but still hard enough to snap her out of her waking dream.   She froze, her eyes locked on Sean’s.  In a tiny, pitiful voice, she said, “Sean?”

“Yes, baby,” he climbed off of her, and knelt next to her on the bed.  He watched her as she looked around, bewildered.  He knew the nightmares would still come, they were inevitable, even her therapist had said so.  But this was truly frightening.

Riley reached out and touched his face. In that same tiny voice, she asked, “We’re really here?  I’m really awake?”   
“Yes, baby, it was just a bad dream.  You’re here with me in my house in L.A.  OUR house in L.A.,” he corrected himself.   
Riley burst into tears.  Sean sat back against the headboard and pulled her tightly to him.  “It’s okay, baby.  It’s over.  He’s gone and he’s never coming back, and I’m here and I’m not leaving you.”

 

She told him the dream, that she’d thought HE was a dream, that all the time she’d spent, everything she had gone through, was all a dream.  That Sean wasn’t there to protect her, and that Kevin wanted her to “see it coming”.  Then she said, “Wait a minute.  You hit me.”   
Sean felt like an ass.  “I had to baby.  You just wouldn’t wake up!  I was trying and trying, but you just wouldn’t calm down!  You were screaming for me to help you and fighting against me so hard, I was really scared!  I did the only thing I could think of, and believe me, I feel like crap for it.  I tried to hit you so I wouldn’t hurt you, but just hard enough to wake you up.  You can hit me back if you want.”  Riley could see he was sincere.

“I don’t want to hit you, Sean.  I get it.  Just….don’t let go, okay?”

“You got it, baby.”

 

They snuggled back down into bed.  Riley was shivering, and although he knew it wasn’t from the cold, Sean pulled the blankets up around her anyway, helpless to do much else.  He waited until her breaths were steady and even and she was asleep before he even closed his eyes.  

 

The next morning he woke to an empty bed.  Hearing noise in the kitchen and smelling the telltale scent of bacon, he knew she was making breakfast.  Sean walked downstairs, and there was Riley at the stove, humming softly to herself.  “Morning, gorgeous,” he said, and she turned and smiled.

“Morning.  Um...sorry I flipped out last night.”

Sean walked over and put his arms around her from behind, so she could still cook, and told her, “Baby, we knew you were still gonna have nightmares.  You don’t have to apologize.  I’m sure you’d rather not have them.”  He kissed the top of her head, then said, “Now, I KNOW I smell bacon….”

“On a plate in the microwave keeping warm,” Riley said, shooing him away.

“Gonna make me fat, princess.”   
“I doubt it!”

 

They ate breakfast and started making plans for her move.  Sean had a huge walk in closet, and he only used one side of it anyway.  He would clear some of the random crap out of the drawers in the bathroom so she would have a place for her toiletries.

“By the way,” Riley told him, “you need to show me where you keep your cleaning supplies.  I’ll need to see if we need anything before I come-”

“Stop.”   
“What?”

“Riley, you aren’t coming here to work for me.  You don’t have to clean my house or run my errands or cook my meals.  Although I would love it if you cooked,” he smiled at her.  “You are moving here because we love each other and want to be together.  I’d like to think I keep a pretty clean house, I’m not a complete slob.  I mean if you notice the hamper is full and want to throw in a load of laundry or unload the dishwasher, I will appreciate it.  But you are not my hired help.”   
Riley smiled.  “You’re right.  Old habits die hard, I guess.  I won’t know what to do with myself all day.”   
“Well, after we get Herbie sorted out, you could always take a few days just driving around and familiarizing yourself with the area.”

 

Riley agreed that was a good idea.  She still wanted some independence.  She’d have her phone for GPS if she got really lost, but she needed to figure out at least where basic stuff was.  She would have to remember how they went to the grocery store and where the nearest pharmacy was, as well as get a local doctor and dentist.  She’d have to forward her mail, and let Ghia know about them driving cross country, she’d probably be incommunicado…

Sean watched Riley’s face.  Suddenly he said, “Hey sweetie.  Calm down.  You’re getting overwhelmed again, I can see it.  Everything will be fine.”

“I’m just worried about finding a doctor and a dentist and forwarding my mail and being unable to deal with edits and stuff while we’re driving.  How long will we be driving?”   
“About 3 to 4 days, depending.”   
“That long?  You want to be stuck in a car with me for that long?”   
Sean smiled at her.  “Baby, I’m looking forward to it.”

 

They sat and talked for a while about all of Riley’s concerns.  As always, Sean was able to calm her down.  If needed, she could see his doctor and dentist until she found her own.  He had already called Ghia and given her a heads up, and he reminded her that she could do a change-of-address for the post office online.

 

“Where will we stay when we’re driving?  We can’t drive straight through.”   
“Of course not.  We’ll stop for food and to stretch our legs, and stay at hotels.”   
“Motel 6?”   
“Oh HELL no.  I plan on violating you all the way across the U.S., and it won’t be in a Motel 6.  We’ll stay at some of the mid-range places.  Like the Hilton and the Radisson and stuff.  Nice rooms inside the building.  As for where we eat, we may be stuck with little diners and stuff.  I know you hate fast food as much as I do.  But if we see an actual decent restaurant, we’ll stop for real food.”   
“You’ve thought this all through, haven’t you?”   
“Yep.  I want to make this as easy as I can on you, babygirl.  I want you to be happy when you get here.”

 

Riley’s heart melted.  She knew she would be happy here with him.  But she would be sad to leave Norman.  Looking over at Sean, he was lost in thought.  He saw Riley looking at him and gave her a sad smile.  “I just don’t want you to leave tomorrow, babygirl.  But I just keep telling myself it will be the last time.  I won’t ever have to watch you disappear down that hallway again.”

 

“Wanna take a shower with me?”  Riley asked.

“You don’t even have to ask.”   
  
They cleaned up the kitchen and headed upstairs.


	60. Chapter 60

Sean followed Riley up the stairs, admiring her cute butt.  “You’ve got an adorably tight little ass, you know that?”

“Little?  I thought big butts were the thing.”   
“Yours is perfect.  Fits right in my hands.  Just like your boobs,” he said reaching up and giving her little buns a squeeze.

 

Riley undressed and got in the shower.  As always, Sean watched her as he slowly undressed.  Watched her tilt her head back into the spray, getting her hair wet.  Watching the water slide over the curves of her smooth body.  He turned on the second shower head and turned it to Riley’s side, then pressed up against her from behind.  “Hey there, pretty girl.”  He slid his hard cock between her water slicked thighs.

Riley said over her shoulder, “I do hope you are planning to fuck more than my thighs.”

Sean spun her around and pressed her up against the shower wall with his body.  “You telling me what I can and can’t do, little girl?  Don’t think I’ve forgotten that you’ve already got one hell of a spanking coming to you.  Want to make it worse?”

Riley breath caught in her throat.  She loved when he got dominant.  “No sir, of course not.  My mistake.”

“Damn right,” he told her, his hard cock throbbing.  “Spread those legs, dirty girl.”

Pressing himself against her body once more, he told her, “I will fuck you wherever I please.  I’ll fuck your mouth if I want to,” and slid two fingers into her mouth.  Pulling them out and running his hands down her body over her tits, he tweaked her nipples and said, “I’ll fuck between your tits if I want to…”  His hands travelled between her legs and rubbed against her pussy which was getting wetter by the second, and not from the shower.  “I’ll fuck your pussy or between your thighs if I want to…”

His hands travelled back up and over her hips, around to her ass.  Sean gently spread her cheeks and squeezed.  He whispered, “One day, I’ll even fuck you here, Riley.”

Riley tensed up but stayed silent.  Sean shifted the way he was standing, and gently slid his cock between her ass cheeks.  Riley whispered, “Sean, no.”   
“Yes, baby.”   
“I can’t.”

Sean slid his hard cock into her sweet little pussy instead.  Pumping into her steadily, he asked her, “Why not? Tell me why I can’t have your ass, baby.”   
“It will hurt.  Your cock is big.”

“Then just my finger today, baby.  Please.”

Riley hesitated then nodded.

 

Sean coated his finger with saliva and pressed it against her hole.  “Breathe, baby.  Relax.  Your know I won’t hurt you.”  This was true.  Riley knew if it was too much, he would stop.  With his cock still buried deep in her pussy, she took a deep breath and tried to relax.

“That’s my girl,” he whispered huskily.  He pushed his finger a little harder, and it began to slide in.  Riley gasped, more out of surprise than anything else, and Sean froze.

“You ok, girl?”   
Nodding, Riley said, “I’m used to stuff coming out of there, not going in!”

Sean couldn’t help but laugh, and Riley giggled, too.  Taking advantage of her truly relaxed state, Sean pressed his finger the rest of the way in.  Riley’s eyes got big.  Sean never stopped his slow fucking of her.

“See, baby?  That’s not too terrible is it?”   
She shook her head no.   
“Riley,” he said, stopping his movement, “use words.  I need to hear you say if you’re ok or not.  It’s ok to tell me to stop.”

Riley took a breath and told him, “I think I’m ok.  I mean, it doesn’t really hurt, it just feels different.  I feel….” she trailed off, obviously racking her brain for the word she wanted to use.   
“Full?”  Sean offered.

“Yeah.  Full.”   
“Do you need me to take my finger out?”   
Riley thought for a moment.  “No.  No, I’m ok.  It just feels so strange.”

 

Sean started fucking her again, faster.  Riley smiled and rested the back of her head against the shower wall.  He started moving his finger opposite of his cock: when his cock went in, he slid the finger out, and vice versa.  When he did that, Riley’s eyes rolled back, and she moaned out a guttural, “Ohhhhh….”

 

Sean started fucking her harder and faster, while still being gentle with his finger.  Riley threw one leg over his hip.  “Faster...fuck me faster, harder!”

Sean couldn’t ignore a request like that.  He was fucking her so hard, her feet were almost coming off the floor.   
Gritting his teeth, he wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold off his orgasm, when he felt her telltale fluttering.  “Gonna cum in you, angel!”   
“Yes!”

 

Burying both his finger and cock into her, he came hard, grunting both swear words and declarations of love.  Riley clamped down on both units inside of her, he couldn’t have pulled out if he wanted to.  Her back arching, she cried out his name again and again, and would have collapsed if Sean hadn’t held her up.  He slid his cock and finger out of her, and saw her tears start.  He sank down to the shower floor holding her, the water still hitting them, and held her close.  “It’s okay baby, shhh…. Are you hurt?  Did I hurt you?  Is that why you’re crying?”

“N-n-no.  It f-felt pretty good.”   
“Overwhelming last few days?”   
She nodded and sniffled.  “And I don’t want to go back.  When I’m here, it’s like I’m safe in this little bubble of you and me.  But when I leave, I go back into the world.  And it just seems harsh and bright and horrible.”   
“Aw, baby.  You’ll be here permanent soon.  And I will do my best to make this house our little bubble.  Now let’s get up and actually clean ourselves up, yeah?”   
“Yeah.”

 

Sean stood and helped Riley up, walking her backwards into the spray to get her hair wet, and washing her hair for her.  Riley smiled and said, “Remember when you washed my hair when I was hurt?”

Sean smiled at her.  “Yep.  I actually enjoyed doing it.  We had some really good talks with your head in the sink.”

 

Sean washed her hair and put conditioner in it, then got the body wash and washed her body as well.  Riley was quiet then asked, “Am I still getting spanked tonight?”  Sean paused, looking at her, and asked, “Do you want to be?  I know I pushed you a little, I don’t want to make you do something you don’t want to…”

“You didn’t push me.  You…. ‘encouraged’ me,” Riley told him and Sean smiled.  She continued, “I know that I can tell you ‘no’ anytime I want or need to.  I know that I can turn you down and you won’t force me or hurt me.”   
“Never.”   
“But….yeah.  I...I think I want it,” she said, looking at the shower floor, cheeks turning pink.

“Hey,” Sean told her, tilting her chin up.  “Nothing to be ashamed of.  I like doing it, and you like having it done.  Look at us, all compatible!”  Riley just giggled.

 

They got out and dried off and Sean asked if she had anything she wanted to do or anywhere she wanted to go today before  she had to leave the next day.  But Riley just wanted to spend time with him alone.  “You aren’t sick of me?” he asked.  “Nope.  Don’t think that will ever happen,” she told him.

He knew he would never get sick of her, either.  Never.

 

They day passed slowly, and they were happy.  They lay on the couch together, and Sean read to Riley, holding her close when she dozed off.  Heading to bed later that night, Sean waited while Riley did her evening routine.  When she walked in, he was sitting against the headboard, arms crossed staring at her.  She walked in, saw him, and said, “What?”  He walked over to her, and walked in a circle around her, as if he were appraising her.  He led her over to the side of the bed, and told her, “Bend over, elbows on the mattress.”

Riley did as she was told.  Sean walked over to his dresser and rummaged around in a drawer until he found what he was looking for.  The black gloves he’d worn in the Boondock Saints movies.  The palms on them were slightly padded, and they’d give him some cushioning.  

Walking behind Riley, he ran his hands up the backs of her legs, the coldness of the leather making her jump.  He whispered, “Leather gloves, angel.  Relax.”  Gently, he hooked his fingers into her little panties and pulled them down.  Leaning over, he kissed the two little dimples above her ass, she called them her “snakebite”.  Taking a breath, he asked her, “You ready for this, little girl?”   
“Yes, sir.”

 

Pulling his hand back, he brought it down, hard on her backside, and Riley cried out.  Sean asked her, “Harder, softer, or the same?”   
“The same.  More...please more….”

He swatted her ass again and again, making it redder by the second.  Pausing at one point, he noticed her surreptitiously rubbing her thighs together, desperate for some kind of friction.  “Spread your legs, dirty girl.  I see what you’re trying to do.”

Riley made an unhappy sound, but did as he said.

Sean smacked her ass for a few more minutes, then stopped to admire his handiwork.  Her ass was dark red, and starting to bruise in some spots, and he was starting to sweat for more reasons than one.  He took off his gloves, and placed them on Riley’s upturned ass.  “I’m going down to get some water.  Don’t move.  I’ll be right back, okay?”

“Yes, sir.”

 

Sean adjusted his hard cock, and headed downstairs, getting a glass of ice water.  He came back up, and Riley was still exactly as he had left her.  He walked over and took the gloves off of her ass, throwing them on the dresser.  “Stand up, angel, hands behind your back.”  Riley stood, rolling her shoulders then clasping her hands behind her.  Sean held the glass up to her mouth, helping her drink, then set it down on the nightstand. 

Riley stood, still facing the bed, hands clasped behind her back, legs still spread.  “You ok, angel?”   
“Yes, sir.”   
“Still wet?” he smiled.

“Yes, sir.”

“You did very well tonight.  Did you enjoy it, Riley?”  

She knew that once her spoke her name, their little scene was over.  “Yes, Sean, thank you,” she told him, turning to face him and unclasping her hands.

He leaned down and gave her a sweet kiss.  “How about you lay down and spread those legs for me?  I’d love to eat that pussy right now.”


	61. Chapter 61

Riley sat down gingerly on the edge of the bed, wincing slightly.  Sean gave her a smile.  “I’ll put some aloe vera on it before we go to sleep, okay?”  Riley nodded, then lay back, opening her legs wide.

Sean lifted her legs over his shoulders, and said softly, “Love you so much, Ri,” before flattening his tongue against her, trying to taste as much of her as he possibly could.  Riley let out a sighing moan.  Sean knew how to work her better than anyone.  He had taken the time and effort to find out what did and didn’t work for her, what turned her on and turned her off, how far her could push her, and when to back off.  For once she felt like she was completely in sync with someone, and he felt the same way.

“Gonna get you off quick so I can fuck you, baby,” he mumbled against her pussy before flicking his tongue rapidly like a snake across her clit, looking up at her with those blue eyes of his.  He watch Riley’s back arch when she came, moaning and calling his name, grabbing him by the hair and forcing his tongue against her harder and deeper.  He loved when she did that.  He lapped at her pussy gently until she said, “Stop, no more….too sensitive…”

He slid up her sweet little body and kissed her gently.  Putting his hands under her arms, he hoisted her up onto the bed properly.  He looked into her eyes as he slid his hard cock inside her, able to feel the last few twitches of her orgasm.     
Riley ran her hands over his face, tracing those lines she loved.  Sean said, “My smile lines,” and Riley said, “I love them.  Don’t ever get rid of them.  They show that you’ve laughed a lot in your life.”

“God I love you, Riley.”

“I love you too, Seanie.”

 

Sean was pumping into her slowly, watching her sweet face.  Soon he would be able to see it every day, and not on Skype or Facetime.  They wouldn’t have to be apart.  They wouldn’t have to wait 2 weeks to spend what only amounted to less than 72 hours.  It had never been enough.  He really would have given up everything for her.

“Sean, faster, please,” Riley whispered.

He sped up, burying his face in her neck.  “You’re mine, Riley,” he whispered.

“Yes.  Always.”

“Always, babygirl.  Always mine.  Say it, I need to hear you say it.”   
Riley gently pulled on Sean’s hair to pull his face out of her neck.  She took his face in her hands and looked  into his eyes as she said, “I’m yours, Sean.  Always.  Always have been, always will be.”  Seeing that this statement was the truth written all over her face, he was almost overcome.  He dropped his face into her neck again to hide it, even though he knew she knew.  Riley tightened up on him and he hissed out, “Fuck, angel!”

“Sean, make me cum.”

He put her leg up on his shoulder and started to thrust into her.  She shifted her hips slightly and he watched as her eyes got big, then slid shut as a smile spread across her face.

“What’s going on, baby?”   
Riley started to thrust up to meet him almost violently, and managed to say, “Should have...put a...towel down.”

“Oh fuck yes!” Sean exclaimed.

They were slamming into each other at the hips.

Riley cried out, “Almost!” and Sean commanded her, “Give it to me, girl!”

 

That was all it took.  Riley’s body arched up off the bed, taking Sean with her.  Her eyes rolled back and she screamed out, “OH FUCK!”  Sean felt her squirt all over his balls and he came inside her, calling out, “YES, FUCKING YES!”  

After he shot his load, he quickly slid down her body and lapped at her box, leaking their mixed cum, as she trembled and shook.  As her body calmed, he slid back up, kissing her, sliding his tongue into her mouth.

“Mmm,” Riley murmured.  “I can taste both of us in your mouth.”

“Good.  Just how it should be angel.”

 

He climbed out of bed and went into the bathroom, bringing back a towel to put on the wet spot and as he put aloe vera on her sore bum, Riley said, “Sorry, I didn’t know.”   
“Girl, I am NOT complaining.”

Climbing back into bed, he set his alarm.  Riley’s flight was at 2 p.m., which meant she had to be there at noon.  He pulled her close.  “Tomorrow, I let you go for the last time,” he said, as he reached over and turned off the light.

In the darkness, Riley’s sleepy little voice said, “The very last time.”

 

The next morning they were quiet as they got ready, still sad at having to separate.  Sean drove her to the airport and accompanied her in.  Before she got in the security, he took her face in his hands, kissed her softly, and said, “Last time, angel.”  Riley nodded.  “You let me know after you tell Norman, and then I’ll make the arrangements to come down and take care of everything,okay?”

“Okay.  I’ll see you soon.  I love you, Sean.”

He gave her one last hug.  “I love you too, Princess Riley.  Now go get your butt in that line or I will never let you leave.”

As always, Riley kept looking back while in line, as if to assure herself he was still there, still watching.  She went through and was walking down the hallway, again, looking back at him.  All she wanted was to run back and jump into his arms.  She got to where she had to turn, and looked back one last time.  Sean was still there, watching her.  She blew him a kiss, and even in the distance, she could see him smile and blow one back.  She walked down the hall, pulled out her phone and texted him, “The LAST time.”  Seconds later, her phone pinged with his reply.  “God damn right, angel.  Text me after you talk to Norman.  Don’t want to confirm plans to come down if he has no idea what’s going on.”   
She checked in at her gate, sat down, and responded, “Will do.  Just checked in, waiting for my LAST flight.  Love you, Seanie boo.”   
“Seanie boo?  You’re lucky you’re cute.  :)  Love you, little princess.”

Riley snoozed off and on, during her flight.  Just as she landed, she got a text from Lisa.  “Norman ended up working late, so I’m at the luggage carousel.”

Arriving at the carousel, Lisa hugged Riley, and they made small talk waiting for her bag.  She liked Riley’s laptop bag and smiled when told that it was a gift from Sean.  “He got it for me because I always worry about looking professional.  Now I do!”

Climbing into Lisa’s car, they pulled out of the airport, and Lisa said, “He asked you to move in and you said yes, am I correct?”   
Riley turned to look at her.  “Yes.  How did you know?”   
“It’s written all over your face, love!”   
“I need to tell Norman, so please don’t say anything, ok?  Although he’ll probably see it on my face, too.”   
“No, he won’t.  He’s a man.  They don’t see things the way we do.  I won’t tell him.  He’s only shooting for a half day tomorrow, you could always tell him then.”

“Yeah.  The sooner the better.”

 

Lisa dropped her off at the house.  It was dark and quiet when Riley went inside, but a lamp in her bedroom was on.  There was a note on her bed from Norman.     
“Hey sweetheart.  Sorry I didn’t wait up, but I was dead tired.  I hope you had a good trip.  I’m only filming until 1:00 in the afternoon tomorrow, so you can tell me all about it when I get home.   
Norman”   
  
She peeked in on him, and he was snoring away, with Eye In the Dark sleeping on his chest.  Eye lifted his head and looked at Riley, then dropped it back down.  She envied the sleeping ability of cats.  Poor Normie, so exhausted.

 

He was already gone when she got up, and after breakfast and a shower, she started her day.  She made a platter of her homemade mac and cheese for lunch, it was one of Norman’s favorites.  At about 1:30, he came in.  She went in the living room to hug him, but stopped short when she saw all the fake blood and dirt and crap on him.  He just laughed and said, “Yeah, I need a shower!”  He sniffed and said, “Is that your mac and cheese?”   
“Yep!  Go take a shower, it will be ready when you get out.”

Twenty minutes later, he was sitting across from her, both of them with some food in front of them.  She showed him her new laptop bag, and he asked about the contract.  Finally, she said, “Um….there’s something else.”   
Norman’s smile faded.  Just from the tone of her voice, he knew.  He looked down at his plate.  “You’re leaving.  Moving in with Sean, right?”

“Yeah….”   
“When?  Today?”

“NO!  No, I’m giving proper two weeks notice.”

“You don’t have to.”   
“Yes, I do.  I was hired for a job, and I intend to do it properly.  I’m not going to just up and leave.  That’s not how I am.”

He looked up and gave her a smile.  “I’m glad you chose him.  I mean, fuck am I gonna miss you, but you made the right choice.  He’ll make you happy.”   
“Now that I’m getting out of here, you can move Lisa in.  I know you haven’t because of me.”   
Norman smiled.  “Yeah, we were talking about it when you were gone.  It kind of got to the point where even if you stayed, I was bringing her in.  I don’t know how you and Sean were able to do that every two weeks thing.  I’d have gone crazy with that kind of arrangement with Lisa.”   
“Well, I did have a meltdown at the penthouse over it.  But once the contract was signed, once I knew everything was really happening….I knew I had to be with him.  There’s no reason not to.”

 

Norman came over to her side of the table and hugged her.  “I’m really happy for you sweetheart.  This the right thing.  This is a GOOD thing.  He’s going to make you so happy. And you’re gonna make him happy, too.”   
“And Lisa will make you happy.  And you’d better make her happy!”

 

They talked about her last day (two weeks from that day, Thursday), and she explained how Sean was going to rent a car and a trailer for Herbie.  Almost all of her clothes would fit in her suitcases, then she would only need a few boxes for the rest of her clothes and he few small things she owned.  “Sean is going to call you to go over all the details.  He’ll probably spend a night or two here, and then we’ll go.  Since Herbie isn’t feeling too well, he will probably need you or Lisa to drive him to Atlanta to get the rental car.”   
“Not a problem.  Also, I should probably tell you something, since you’re leaving.  When Lisa moves in, she’s going to quit working for Lauren.  Lauren already knows this, and she’s going to become my personal assistant instead.  That way, when I travel, I get to take her with me.”  He had a big smile.

Riley was excited.  “That’s a great idea!  Now you guys won’t ever have to be apart, either!  Wow, you guys have it all figured out!”   
“We’ve been talking about it for awhile.  We knew that if this book happened, you would go.  I never wanted you to leave, Ri, please know that.  But I knew you had to be your own person sooner or later.  And I want you to know, you are one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met.  I mean that, Riley.  You’re strong and fearless, but still very sweet and kind.  After all that happened, you hold your head high, and you should,” his said, his voice catching.  “I couldn’t be prouder of you, Riley.  I feel honored to say you’re my friend.  I mean that.”

He had sat back down when he told her this, and Riley jumped up from her side of the table.  He stood up and she ran right into his arms.  “I’m gonna miss you so much!” she cried.

He held her and stroked her hair. “Now now, none of that.  Hey, come on, Ri,” he said pulling away and looking at her.  “It’s not like we won’t ever see you again!  We can Skype or Facetime, and we were already talking about trying to get together with you guys every few months for a weekend to visit here or in L.A. or New York.  This isn’t the end of the story, girl.  It’s just another chapter.  Okay?”  He handed her a tissue.  Riley dried her eyes and nodded.  She knew she was making the right choice, but this house had been her home for almost 3 years.  It was bound to be bittersweet.

 

Sean and Norman worked out the logistics of him coming to visit and get Riley. Andrew Lincoln got wind of what was going on, and offered to take Sean to Atlanta to get the car as he had to travel into the city that day.  Riley even went and spent a day on the set to say goodbye to everyone.  Michael Cudlitz got all teary, making everyone else get the same way.  They all liked Riley.  They had met her through working with Norman, socialized with her at his barbecues, and visited her in the hospital.  Chandler Riggs told her, “You don’t have to marry Sean and move away.  Stay here, you can marry me.”  Chandler’s crush on Riley was well known.  It was truly the sweetest thing ever.

During the week, Riley helped Lisa move in.  Like Riley, she didn’t have much in the way of furniture, having lived with Lauren in her house, so they moved in her things a bit at a time.  Within a few days, she was moved in.  After she started unpacking, Riley took a couple of her emptied boxes and packed her few belongings.  After her folks had died in a fire while she was in college, Riley spent her life travelling light, never buying anything big.  She had a few photo albums that had survived the fire, and that was about it.  She had very few items that were purely decorative, but what she had was packed.  She also packed the clothes and shoes she wasn’t planning on wearing for the trip.  She could do laundry the day before, taking care of the last of the clothes that she would need.

Sean would come on Thursday with Riley and Lisa picking him up at the airport, Andrew would take him back into Atlanta to the long term car rental place where he would get the car and drive to get the trailer on Friday.  He would bring it back and they would load up Herbie, then leave around 10 - 11 a.m. on Saturday.  Riley had never been more excited or frightened.  Change was a scary thing.

Riley got the first round of edits, and it was all going smoothly.  Ghia was keeping up her end of the deal - the edits were mainly for clarity, so that was going well.  She spent a day in town, saying goodbye to the folks at Bailey’s and to Officer Grimes and Tara.  They were thrilled that her book was getting published, but seemed unsurprised about her moving in with Sean.  Rick told her, “I knew from the beginning you two would end up together, but you were both too busy being stubborn!”  Tara added, “You could tell by the way the two of you looked at each other and your body language.  It was pretty obvious.”

  
Riley counted the days until Sean came.


	62. Chapter 62

The house ran surprisingly smoothly when Lisa moved in.  She stayed out of Riley’s way, spending a lot of time on her cell and laptop making travel arrangements for Norman for conventions and talk shows, and making sure he kept up with mundane things like doctor and dentist appointments.  Riley’s job had been to cook and clean, period.  So when it came to stuff like that, Norman usually did it himself.  He had never asked Riley to do it.  So now when he got home from the set, he could truly relax.  Lisa also took over the basic errands: picking up and dropping off things at the post office and the like.  Riley had done that, but now she didn’t need to.  She found herself done with her chores by early afternoon, unsure of what to do with herself.

Norman got home early to find Riley sitting on the couch, pouting.  Lisa was out running an errand.  “Hey sweetie, what’s wrong?” he asked.

“Nothing.”   
“You’re a bad liar.”   
“It’s stupid.”   
He sat down next to her.  “Try me.”   
Riley took a deep breath.  “Ugh, this is so embarrassing.  It’s just that...you’ve replaced me.  I knew you would, and I’m glad you did, but…..you always said I was irreplaceable.  But Lisa’s replaced me.  She does all the stuff I ever did and some stuff I didn’t, and I know that once I’m gone, she’ll be taking care of the cooking and cleaning, too.  Why didn’t you just get rid of me?”   
Norman smiled.  “Riley, you ARE irreplaceable.  Regardless of her doing the things you didn’t, she isn’t you, and you aren’t her.  You cooked and cleaned, and you gave me companionship when I was alone.  It was so nice to come home to someone.  You made my house a home.  Honestly, Eye is going to flip out when you’re gone.  He sleeps with you more than he sleeps with me.  Living with someone is never easy, but YOU made it easy.  We had our nice, comfortable routine.  I wasn’t sure about offering you a job when Bailey’s burned down.  When you accepted, I figured you’d stay on until it got rebuilt, then go back to living in the trailer park and working at the bar.”   
“But when I asked if you wanted me to go back to Bailey’s and the trailer park, you said no!”   
“And I meant it.  I was so much happier with you here!  Riley, you took really good care of me, better than I did for myself.  Now I have Lisa, and I love her, and we’re going to take care of each other.  Lisa is irreplaceable.  And so are you.  Take this extra time to just relax.  With as hard as you’ve always worked for me, you’ve earned it.”

Riley smiled.  Girls thought Norman was this cute, dorky guy, and he was.  But he also always knew the right thing to say.

 

Thursday came quickly, and Riley and Lisa drove to pick up Sean.  They waited at the luggage carousel, and Lisa smiled as Riley jumped right into Sean’s arms, as always.  He held her tightly to him, and said softly in her ear, “Never again.”  Riley pulled back and looked at him.  “Never again,” she repeated.  They collected his bag, and chatted with him all the way home.  They stopped at the house, and Lisa said, “I have some things to do, I’ll be back in 2 hours.”   
Riley said, “I thought you said you didn’t have any plans today.”   
“Well, umm…”   
Sean said, “Ri, she’s trying to give us some alone time.”

Riley looked at Lisa, who had a big smile on her face and was nodding, and said, “Oh….”  Lisa pulled away and Sean said, “You are adorable when you blush.”

“Shut up.”

 

Once inside the house, he walked over to where Riley stood, quickly threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and picked up his suitcase, making her giggle.  “Two damn weeks,” he muttered as he walked back to her room.  “Too long,” she replied as he set her down.

He put down his suitcase, and then he was all over her.  Pulling her shirt off over her head, then slipping his tongue into her mouth while pushing her down on the bed.  Riley was pulling off his clothes as well, unable to wait any longer.  “Need you, Ri,” Sean breathed, pulling off her shoes and pants, and pausing to look at her in her bra and panties.    
“I need you, too, Sean.”

He pulled off the rest of his clothes, never taking his eyes off her.  Riley sat up to pull off her bra, then lifted her hips as Sean slid her panties down her legs.  He stood just looking down at her for a moment while stroking his cock.  Riley looked up at him confused.  “Sean?”   
“Just trying to figure out how the fuck I got so damn lucky.”   
Riley smiled.  “Come down here and I’ll make you really lucky.”

Sean lay down on top of her and said, “Luck of the Irish.”  He started kissing down her neck and slipped into his Connor MacManus voice, “Does that feel good, love?  Tell old Connor how good he makes you feel.”   
“It’s so good, Sean.”   
“No, love.  The name is Connor.”

Riley smiled at him.  “I’m so sorry, Connor.  It feels very good.”

Sean smiled against her skin. 

“Do you have a little Irish in ya, lass?”   
“No sir.”   
“Do you WANT a little Irish in ya?” he questioned, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.   
“No, I want a LOT of Irish in me.  Think you're up for that, Lucky Charms?”   
Sean smiled at the nickname.  “Am I magically delicious?”

Riley flipped them over so she was on top of him.  “Yes you are.”

 

She began kissing down his neck and chest.  Still in Connor mode, he asked, “Heading for the holy land, are ya?”

Riley looked up at him and said, “Fuck off, Lucky Charms.  I’m in love with Sean and about to suck HIS cock.”   
Sean laughed.  “Okay, babygirl.”   
“Connor can come play another time.  Right now I want Sean.”

She continued down his washboard abs, pausing to give little nips here and there.    Looking up at Sean, he had his head propped up on a pillow so he wouldn’t miss a thing, and Riley smiled at him.  Taking his hard cock in her hand, he watched as she licked it from base to tip, slowly swirling her tongue around the head.  “Fuck, Ri,” he breathed out.  “So good to me, babygirl.”

She slid his cock into her mouth, then put her fingers right up against his taint, with her thumb massaging the seam of his balls.  Sean managed to choke out, “Gonna make me pass out?” Riley simply mumbled, “Mm hmm,” around a mouthful of dick.  He reached down, pushing her hair back so he could watch her.  His dirty little angel, sucking his dick like she was born to do it.  He felt the tingling starting in his belly.  “Close, babygirl,” he managed to say.  Riley sped up everything: her hot mouth sliding up and down his dick, her hand twisting around the base, and her other hand firmly at his balls, with her thumb speeding up on the seam.

Within a few seconds, he grasped her hair in his hands, forcing himself into her mouth.  He growled out nonsensically, “Love...you...fucking...bitch….”, and then exploded hot jets of cum down her throat.  Each spurt made his body jerk and he gave off a grunt and a gasp as Riley watched.  He tried to keep his eyes on her, but they screwed shut as explosions short circuited his brain, and he finally collapsed against the bed, out cold.

Riley let his cock slid out of her mouth, and crawled up next to him.  She made sure he was breathing and he was.  She smiled to herself and curled up next to him, listening to his hammering heart finally slow to a reasonable pace.

 

Twenty minutes later, Sean’s eyes fluttered open, and Riley was looking up at him with a smile.  Running his hand through his hair, he asked, “Did I call you a bitch?”   
“Yeah, you did.”   
“Shit.  I’m sorry.”   
Riley just chuckled.  “It’s okay.  You also said you loved me.”   
Sean smiled at her, “And I do.  So much.”   
She propped herself up on her elbow.  “Are you sure you want me in your house?”   
Sean looked at her and said, “No.”  Riley’s heart fell until he continued, “But I AM sure I want you in OUR house.  That is going to be your house, too, Riley.”   
She picked at a thread on the blanket and muttered, “I didn’t pay for it.”   
“Hey,” Sean told her, gently taking her chin and forcing her to look at him.  “You paid in plenty of ways, Riley.  That is your house, too, and I don’t want to hear you describe it any other way, you understand?”  His voice was stern, but his eyes were soft.

Riley nodded and said, “OUR house.”   
“You could even call it yours.  It gets to be a habit.  I could see you saying, ‘Oh I need to get it, I left it at MY house,’ and that would make me very happy.”

Snuggling up to his chest, she said, “I love you so much, Seanie.  This is all so scary and exciting.”   
“Gonna be there with you every step of the way, Princess Riley.”

 

He rolled over on top of her and started kissing her again, mumbling, “How about I put that bit of Irish in you now?”

“That sounds good.”

He slid his dick into her slowly and deeply.  Lacing his fingers through hers, he pinned her arms above her head, looking into her eyes.

“You’re everything to me.  I’m going to do my best to make you happy.”   
“You already do.”   
  


Sean dropped his head into her neck.  He was overcome.  His baby was coming home.  He would never be apart from her again.

 

“You’re mine, Riley,” he said, raising his head and thrusting into her harder.  “Say it, angel.  I want to hear it.”   
“I’m yours, Sean.  All yours.  Property of Sean Patrick Flanery.”

“Fuck yes you are.”

 

Riley wrapped her legs around his waist.  Sean let go of her hands, and put his arms under hers, grabbing her shoulders, and sat up on his heels, pulling her with him.  Gravity pulled Riley down, burying Sean deep inside her.  He held her against his chest.  “Love you so much, Ri.  You’ve made me so happy.”  He was sniffling.  She pulled back, and saw tears spill out of his eyes, and he wiped them away, annoyed.

“Sean!  Why are you crying?”   
“Because I’m happy.”   
“Well, I don’t want you to cry.  How about if I make you smile?” she asked.  Unwrapping her legs from around his waist, she put her feet on the bed behind Sean’s back, and started rocking in his lap.

“Fuck yes, baby,” he hissed out.

“Love your cock, Sean.  Fits so perfectly….”

 

They started to move faster, and he asked her, “Are you still scared, babygirl?”   
“Not right now.  You make me not scared anymore.”

“Can’t wait to get you home.  Our home, angel.”   
“Yes….”

Sweat was forming on both of their bodies.  Riley could feel her orgasm building, and Sean saw the telltale look on her face.  Laying her back down, he started to hammer into her, making her gasp and moan.  “Gonna cum in you so hard, dirty girl.”   
“Fuck me harder!”

 

A few more thrusts, and he buried himself in her.  Her pussy pulsing around him, squeezing the cum out of his cock, making him grunt like a caveman as his body jerked.  He collapsed on top of her for only a moment before rolling off and pulling her close.  “I love you, Ri,” he told her as his eyes started to close.  He heard her sleepily mumble “Love you too, Seanie.  Forever.”

  
He held her tightly as they fell asleep.


	63. Chapter 63

They woke up a few hours later when they heard Norman and Lisa come home.  They got dressed and stumbled out into the living room, where Sean and Norman hugged.  Norman said, “I actually have to go back to the set for a read through tonight, they’re changing some scenes, but Lisa and I wanted to have dinner with you guys tomorrow night, since you’re leaving Saturday morning.  Does that sound okay?”   
Riley said, “Sure.  What did you want me to make?”   
Smiling at her, Norman said, “Not a damn thing.  I’m going to pick up something for us.  How does Italian sound?”   
“But I can cook-”   
“Riley,” Norman interrupted her, “as of today, you didn’t work for me anymore.  You gave me your two week notice.  All you need to do before you leave is relax.  You’ve earned it.”   
Riley opened her mouth to argue, and Sean put his hand over it, stopping her.  “He’s right, sweetie.  You’ve worked very hard for him.  Hell, after you went to the hospital the first time, you came home and tried to sweep the kitchen the next day.  Now you get to have a break.”   
Riley wasn’t sure what to say.  “Wow.  Um, okay.  I guess I can sleep in tomorrow, too.”   
  


Lisa, Sean and Riley had dinner together, just leftovers, and Lisa headed to bed early.  Sean and Riley headed to bed themselves not long after.  Sean was jet-lagged and had to be sure to wake up when Andy came by to take him into town.  They cuddled up in bed, and Sean asked her, “You dealing with everything ok, baby?”   
“Yeah.  It’s kind of scary still, but exciting.”   
They talked for a bit about the driving, which they planned to split.  Sean told her, “I plan to stop every 3 hours or so.  We can put gas in the tank, stretch our legs, go to the bathroom, get a snack.  Sound good?”   
“Perfect.”   
“Did you have any sights you wanted to see?  The Grand Canyon or anything?”

“Nope.  I did all my sightseeing when I drove here from Portland.  Saw the Grand Canyon, went to New Orleans and saw Marie Laveau’s grave, even saw the world’s largest ball of twine in Kansas.”

“Are you serious?”   
“Yep.  The Grand Canyon was a big hole, the twine was boring as hell.  Marie’s grave though….that was something else.”  She grabbed her phone and showed Sean a picture.  He asked, “What are all those X’s?”   
“People leave them when they ask her for a wish or for her help.”

“Did you ask?”   
“Oh hell no!  I’m not superstitious, but I don’t believe in tempting fate.”   
“Is that garbage on the ground?”   
“No, offerings and gifts.  Candy, coins, anything really.  Someone left her a lipgloss, see it there?  I left her some candy.  I didn’t ask for anything, but it seemed like the right thing to do, I hadn’t brought flowers or anything.”

Sean smiled.  Polite, even to the dead.  Sweet Riley.   
He made sure his phone was plugged in and his alarm set, and he cuddled up to sleep with her.  

 

Waking up before his alarm went off, he slid out of the warm bed and took a quick shower.  Andy was coming early, so he wanted to be ready when he got there.  He was able to make coffee with Norman’s K cup machine.  Walking quietly back into the bedroom, he looked at Riley, curled up sleeping.  He would be able to see that sweet face every morning from now on, no more goodbyes.  Leaning over, he kissed her gently on the cheek.  She stirred and mumbled, “Seanie?”   
“Go back to sleep, princess.  I’ll be heading out with Andy soon.  I’ll be back as soon as I can.”   
“K,” she mumbled as she rolled over and went right back to sleep.

 

Sean was putting on his shoes in the living room when Norman made his way to the kitchen.  “You heading out, bro?” he asked, pushing his shaggy hair out of his eyes.

“As soon as Andy gets here.” 

As if on cue, Andy pulled into the driveway and beeped the horn.  Sean jumped up and was out the door.  Just as he closed the front door, Lisa emerged from the bedroom.  Sitting next to Norman at the kitchen table, she said, “We’re telling them tonight, aren’t we?”   
Norman smiled and put his hand over hers.  “Yep.  During dinner.”   
“I’m surprised Riley hasn’t noticed.”   
“I’m not.  She’s been worrying about the move and doing some edits on the book.  Otherwise she would have.”   
“I suppose you’re right.”   
  


Sean was gone for a few hours.  Andy dropped him off at the rental place and told him to call if there were any problems. But everything went off fairly easy.

He got a good deal on the SUV rental.  It took forever as he had to fill out a ton of paperwork and insurance forms in triplicate.  Then the guy handed him the keys and wished him safe travels.  After that he headed over to the trailer rental to fill out even more forms.  The guy showed him how to attach and detach the trailer, and how to secure a car on it.  He even told Sean that if he had any trouble to call him, and he could Facetime and walk him through it again.  At both places, Sean confirmed the date and address of the drop off stations in L.A.  Then he headed back to Senoia.

Riley was already up and about when Sean got back, and Norman and Lisa were gone for the day.  They decided to go ahead and load Herbie on to the trailer.  Although Riley fretted, it was surprisingly simple.  After he got the car secure, he smiled at Riley lovingly patting Herbie’s fender and telling him they were going someplace where it was always sunny and he’d get that new engine she’d promised.

Turning to Sean, he was surprised at the despondent look on her face.  “What’s wrong, Ri?”

“Nothing.  Everything.  I’m just scared.  What if this doesn’t work out?”   
“It will, baby.  We made travelling every two weeks work, we can make you moving in work.”

She sighed and ran her hands through her hair.  “I know I’m being a crazy worrywart.  It’s just ...this is a big deal.”   
“I know.  But you’ll see.  It will all work out.  I promise.”

“Okay.”

 

Riley got their laundry washed and packed.  All they had to do the next morning was load up Riley and Sean’s suitcases, and her two boxes.  

That evening, Norman and Lisa got in just before 6, with bags of Italian food from Riley’s favorite place over in Newnan.  Sean and Riley set the table while Norman unpacked the food and Lisa got a bottle of wine.

Once they were all settled and eating, Riley asked Norman, “You’ll be here tomorrow to see me off, right?”   
He smiled at her.  “Of course, sweetheart.  I wouldn’t miss it for the world.  And be forewarned, I may get a little bit emotional.”   
Sean interjected, “I put a box of tissues in the car.  I expect Riley to cry all the way through Georgia, and part of Alabama.”   
Riley turned to him, “This from the guy who cried the other night because he was happy!”   
“Hey,” Sean defended himself.  “I was and AM happy!  It’s my girlfriend and I’ll cry if I want to!”

 

After they ate, Norman pulled out one of Riley’s favorites.  “I got a chocolate cheesecake for dessert!”  Riley’s face lit up like a kid on Christmas.  Norman gave everyone a slice and said, “I know it’s hugely fattening, but this is a special occasion.”   
Riley wrinkled her brow. “Me leaving is a special occasion?”   
Norman and Lisa exchanged a look.  “Well,” Lisa began, “we wanted to give you a good farewell.  But...there’s more.”   
Norman said, “I’ve asked Lisa to marry me, and she said yes.”

 

Before Norman could say anything else, Riley was jumping up and down and squealing with joy.  “YES!   YES!  Holy crap, you guys!”

Sean gave Norman a bro hug and said, “Congratulations man!”  He hugged Lisa and said, “You keep his ass in line, lady!”

Riley and Lisa commiserated over the cheesecake, and Lisa said, “I was surprised you didn’t notice my ring!  I thought you would until Norman pointed out that you were so worried about the move, you hadn’t had time!”   
Norman had proposed only days before, and the only people who knew besides Sean and Riley were Norman and Lisa’s parents.  Norman said, “I didn’t want to make an announcement until all my family members knew.  And you guys are family.”   
  


They were planning for a small-ish wedding in about 6 months.  Lisa told Riley, “I plan on asking Lauren to be my maid of honor.  After all, I met Norman at her wedding.  But I wanted to have just one more bridesmaid.  Riley, would you be my bridesmaid?  It would mean so much to me.”   
“Really?” Riley asked, her eyes big.  “I’ve only been in a wedding once, and that’s when I was a flower girl when I was 7.  At least this time, I’ll have front teeth in the pictures!”

Norman turned to Sean and said, “Ming is gonna be my Best Man, but I’d like it if you were my Groomsman.  What do you say?”   
Sean smiled and said, “Hell yeah I will!  Besides, if I let Ming ride with Riley, he might try to steal her away.”   
“Oh you're ok...although he IS 18….” Riley told him.   
“Lady don’t think I don’t know that Chandler Riggs proposed to you!  Mingus has a crush on you, too!”

Norman laughed.  “She can still turn a young guy's head, but she’s shacking up with your senior citizen ass!  Consider yourself lucky!”

 

They finished dinner, loaded the dishwasher, and all 4 of them climbed onto Norman’s big L-shaped couch and watched a movie.  Riley whispered to Norman, “This is the last time we’ll watch a movie together…”  He leaned over and kissed her cheek.  “Yes, but I’ve enjoyed it every single time.”

 

After the movie, they went off to bed.  Riley sniffled and cried against Sean’s chest, while he held her and stroked her hair.  He knew this was going to be hard on her.  What they didn’t realize was that Norman was sniffling and crying in Lisa’s arms, too.  His best friend was moving on.  And she deserved nothing but happiness.


	64. Chapter 64

Riley woke up early, before anybody else.  She slipped out from under Sean’s big, tree-trunk arm, and had a quick shower.  Heading into the kitchen, she decided to make everyone breakfast one last time.  Pulling out the pancake mix and the frying pan as quietly as possible, she saw some blueberries in the fridge.  Blueberry pancakes for everyone.  She made a large stack, keeping them warm in the oven and was just finishing as Sean came stumbling in.  “Hey angel.  Something smells good.”   
Before she could say anything, Norman and Lisa came out.  Norman told her, “Ri, you didn’t have to make breakfast.  You don’t work for me anymore.”  He put his hand on her back gently.

“I know,” she replied.  “But it’s the last time I will.  And I know you love my pancakes even though I don’t make them very often.  And,” she said reaching into the oven for the plate, “I made blueberry ones.”

Sean took the plate of pancakes and set them on the table and Lisa grabbed plates and forks for everyone.  Norman put his arms around her and said, “Thank you, honey.  I do appreciate it.”

During breakfast Sean went over their loose itinerary.  “I’ve got the car and trailer for 5 days, so even if we go super slow, it won’t matter.  I think we should stop at around 6 every night.  We can get dinner and find a place to stay.  I’m thinking we can get somewhere between Memphis and Little Rock tonight.”   
Riley looked at him.  “Five whole days?  Do we really need it?”   
“Well, better safe than sorry.  And if I return them before the 5 days in the same condition I rented them in, they don’t charge for the days I didn’t use.  So win-win situation.  When we get closer, I’m gonna call these guys I know at a body shop.  Maybe we can drop Herbie off right away and they can start working on him?”   
“Oh, that would be nice.  Maybe I can get a rental or loaner, just so I can get around if I need to.”   
“Sure thing, princess.”   
  
Lisa and Norman were listening to the exchange between them and looked at each other.  Those two were going to be just fine.

 

A few hours later, Sean was showered and ready to go, loading Riley’s few belongings into the SUV.  Riley was in the bedroom and bathroom, double and triple checking that she wasn’t leaving anything behind.     
She had everything.   
It was time to go.

 

She walked out of her bedroom for the last time, and saw Lisa leaving Norman’s room and closing the door.  Seeing Riley, she said, “I think he just needs a moment.”  After Lisa left the hallway, Riley knocked softly at Norman’s door.  She heard his voice say softly, “I need a minute, Lis.  Ask them to wait a minute.”   
Ignoring what he said, Riley opened the door.  Irritated, Norman turned saying, “Dammit, Lis, give me a minute!”  As soon as he saw Riley, he swiped at his eyes, telling her, “Shit, honey, I’m sorry.  I thought you were Lisa.  And really I shouldn’t be snapping at her, either.”

Riley walked over to him and they looked out his bedroom window quietly for a moment.  She took her key ring out of her pocket, saying,  “Let me give you these back.  I’ve got the key for here and the penthouse.”   
“No.”   
She lifted her head, and Norman was shaking his head no.  He gave her a sad smile, telling her, “Me and Lisa had a talk about this last night.  You keep the keys.  If anything goes wrong, and I do NOT think it will, but just in case….you can always come back.  I don’t care if it’s 10 years from now.  You will always have a place with us.  You can always come...HOME.”  Norman was already teary when he told her this, and that last sentence set her off.  It made her feel good to know that he cared so much, that he would always be there.  Smiling through her tears, she told him, “You're like my safety net.  Best safety net ever,” she threw her arms around him an added just loud enough for him to hear, “and best FRIEND ever.  Knowing you has made my life so wonderful.  None of this would have been possible without you.  And I don’t mean the bad stuff.  That could have happened anywhere.  You were my boss, but you will always be my best friend.  I love you so so much,” she said, holding him tightly.

“I love you, too, sweetheart.  Gonna miss having you around.”

 

There was a soft knock at the open door. They turned and Sean was standing there, a gentle smile on his face.  “We’re all packed and ready, Ri.  You need a few more minutes?”

 

She took a shaky breath and wiped away her tears.  Norman nodded his head, and told her, “It’s time.”  Turning to Sean, she said, “We’re good.  Let’s go.”

 

Norman held her hand as they walked out to the car.  The last time he had done so was when she was in her coma.  She gave Lisa a hug, Norman still holding her hand, and told her, “I’m so glad the two of you are together.  And I feel a lot better knowing he won’t be here alone.”  Norman walked her over to the SUV, helped her climb up, and shut the door.  Through the open window, he told her, “Put on your seatbelt.  And if you get tired when you’re driving, let Sean know right away.  And be sure to try and eat some healthy stuff if you can.  Text me every night and let me know what city you’re in so I don’t worry, okay?”   
Riley could only smile and nod her head, if she spoke she’d burst into tears.  Sean was hugging Lisa goodbye.  He turned and hugged Norman as well.  Norman told him, “You be careful, she’s precious cargo.”   
“I know it, brother.”   
“And you’d better treat her right.”   
“Of course.  Why do you think one of my pet names for her is ‘Princess Riley’?”

 

Sean got into the SUV with Riley, and with Norman and Lisa’s help, backed the car and trailer out of the driveway.  They started to leave and Riley turned to look out the back windows, but with the trailer, she couldn’t see them.  She looked into the side view mirror, and watched them get smaller and smaller.  They turned along a curve in the road, and as they did, they disappeared from sight.  And then she burst into tears.

“Aw sweetie…” Sean said. There wasn’t much else he could do.  He didn’t want to pull over, they had just left.  So he held her hand and let her cry.  After about 30 minutes, it had slowed to miserable sniffles.  She told Sean, “I hope you know that I DO love you and want to live with you.  This is just...hard.”   
Sean kissed the back of her hand that he was still holding and told her, “Princess, I understand. I really do.  It’s okay.”

 

They drove for about 2 hours when Sean asked, “You ready to stop for lunch?”   
“Mmm, yeah.  I’m getting kind of hungry.”

“Okay.  Keep you eyes opened for someplace decent.”

After a few more minutes of driving, Riley spotted a truck stop.  “How about there?  Truck stops tend to have really good food.  Otherwise the truckers wouldn’t eat there.”   
“Okay, sounds good.”

They exited the freeway and pulled up to a parking space. There were dozens of trucks.  It was really a full service truck stop: in addition to the restaurant, it had a gas station/convenience store, a truck wash, and bathrooms complete with showers.  Climbing out of the rented SUV, Sean came over to Riley’s side and took her hand and they entered the restaurant.     
The bell over the door tinkled as they walked in, drawing glances that turned to stares.  Riley was wearing shorts, and about two dozen big burly guys were looking at her scars.  She felt Sean stiffen next to her.  A big guy sitting at the counter turned and looked at both of them, then at the other truckers staring and said, “Ain’t polite to stare, gentlemen.  Knock it off,” and went back to his coffee.  The other truckers went back to their plates of food.   

A waitress came and showed them to a table, the truckers looking at both of them out of the corners of their eyes as they passed.  Looking at the menus, she could practically feel Sean vibrate with anger next to her.  Without even looking up she said softly, “Calm down.  Now.  I mean it.”  

“They were staring at you.”   
She looked at Sean over her menu.  “Well they’re not anymore.  Come on now, we talked about this at Disneyland.  If I had an arm covered in tattoos, they’d look.  It’s human nature.  If you’re gonna get pissed every time someone looks, you may as well turn the car around and take me back to Senoia.”  Sean looked shocked when she said that, and even more so when she added, “I’m serious.”

Sean took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair.  “I’m sorry, Ri.  You’re right.  I just hate it when complete strangers turn into looky-loos.  But you’re right.  I need to learn to deal with it.”

They both ordered chicken fried steak with biscuits and white gravy, and sweet tea.  Riley always loved chicken fried steak, and it was hard to come by once you left the southern states.  They ate until they thought they would explode.  Sean excused himself to go to the men’s room, and Riley got a refill on her tea.  

She was sitting at the table minding her own business when that big trucker who had been sitting at the counter, the one who had told the others to stop staring, walked up.   
“Aren’t you Riley?”


	65. Chapter 65

Riley looked up at where the voice came from….and that was a long ways up.  This guy made Brice, the security guy Norman had hired so long ago, look short.  His chest looked like it was 10 feet wide. Riley was terrified.

How did he know her name?  She’d never seen him in her life.  Was he someone who knew Kevin?  Had he been Kevin’s friend?  Was she in danger?  They were somewhere outside of Lincoln, Alabama...how did he know her?  Riley’s eyes flicked to the table, but the waitress had already taken their plates and silverware.  She didn’t even have a fork to stab him with.  If this guy grabbed her, who would stop him?  She was shaking, and hoping Sean hurried back, but could he take on this guy?

The man spoke again.  “Aren’t you Riley?  Isn’t that Sean Flanery with you?”

Aside from shaking, Riley was frozen to the spot.  The man gave a small frown and said, “Are you ok?  You look kinda pale.”   
Sean came walking back from the bathroom right then, seeing Riley pale and shaking in the shadow of a giant, he hurried to the table, and asked the guy, “Excuse me, can I help you?”

The big guy seemed to realize that Riley was afraid of him.  “I’m real sorry, I didn’t mean to scare her.  Isn’t she Riley?  Aren’t you Sean Flanery?  I follow you on Twitter.  I thought I recognized her from the pictures you post sometimes.”  Looking at Riley, the big guy squatted down in front of her.  “I’m real sorry.  I sometimes forget how big I am.”

 

Riley took a deep breath and her color started to come back.  The big guy looked so apologetic.  She smiled at him and said, “Yeah, I’m Riley.”

The guy turned out to be a trucker and fan of Sean.  He introduced himself as Paul Buchanan, telling them, “But everybody calls me Paul Bunyan because I’m so big.”  He’d followed Sean on Twitter for years, and had seen the big mess when that girl at Disneyland had outed Riley, and was one of the people who had defended Riley.  He mentioned that he had been listening to the audiobook of Jane Two while he drove and loved it.  Sean told him, “If you want to grab it, I’d be happy to sign it.”   
“Really?  That would be great!”  He jogged out to his truck like a giant kid.

 

Sean turned to Riley.  “You ok?”   
“Yeah.  I guess I’d better get used to people recognizing me.  I just flipped out a little because we’re out in the middle of nowhere, and I felt like I was sitting in the shade of a giant redwood!”

Paul came bounding back in with the case for the audiobook.  “Could you make it out to Elise?  She’s my wife, and I know she’d love your autograph.”   
“Sure thing,” Sean said.  “Do you have a cell phone?  We can take a pic for you to send to her.”   
“Really?”  Paul smiled like a kid in a candy store.  “She’ll freak out!”   
  


He pulled out his cell phone and Riley offered to take the picture.  He sent it to his wife as Sean was autographing the audiobook case, and his phone rang immediately.  Listening to him was comical.   
“Hi baby!....No, he’s really here….Right now….He’s sitting next to me with his girlfriend …. Absolutely not!....Sean is a busy man…..No, you can’t speak to him!....Baby….Aw come on, don’t cry…..”   
Sean laughed and said, “I hate when women cry, I’d be happy to talk to her for a minute.”   
Paul told his wife, “Ok, hold on, he said he’d talk to you,” and handed the phone to Sean.

“Hello, you must be Elise!....Yes, I’m really Sean Flanery….What?.....Well, ok…”  He cleared his throat, then pulled out his Connor voice.  “Well hello lass!  Name’s Connor MacManus…..What’s that, love?....No matter what Murphy says, I’m the older brother!....Our mum said ‘twas the one with the bigger dick, and that’s definitely me!”  Riley could hear Paul’s wife laughing on her end, and Paul looked completely embarrassed and muttered, “Oh jeez!”

Shifting back to his own voice, he told her, “It was nice talking to you, but my girl and I need to get going...Yes he did, as a matter of fact, he asked me to sign it to you….I agree, you’ve got a good man!....Alright Elise, bye bye.”  He ended the call and gave Paul back his phone.  Paul told him, “Thanks man.  She owes me big time!”

Riley told him, “Thank you for making people stop staring when we came in.  I’m used to it, but Sean isn’t just yet.”

Paul told her something they had never even considered.  “They stare because they wonder if he gave you those scars.”

Sean was horrified, and Riley was shocked.  “No, of course not!” Riley told him.

Speaking up, Sean said, “A fucking monster did that to her.  She wrote a book about it, it’s going to be published.”

Paul nodded.  “I didn’t think you had.  Not with the way you look at each other.  Some serious love there.  You can see it.”

 

Sean paid the bill and they pulled the car around to put gas in it.  Riley took over the driving for a while.  Sean said, “You looked really scared when I came out of the bathroom.”

Riley just nodded.

Sean was quiet, then pressed a little.  “Wanna tell me why?”   
“Did you see that guy?  He was huge.”   
“Riley, it was more than that….”

She heaved a sigh.  “The first thing he said when he walked up was ‘Are you Riley’.  We’re in Timbuktu….how would he know my name?  I’m a nobody.  All I could think was that maybe he’d been a friend of Kevin’s.”

Sean told her, “Baby, freaks like that don’t have friends.”   
“Ever see the movie ‘Henry: Portrait Of a Serial Killer’?  He had a friend and they killed people together.  Him and Ottis Toole, and it was a true story.”

“Baby, he’s gone.  They couldn’t even find any living family.”   
“I know.  But that guy knew me just because I was your girlfriend.  That’s just...weird.  And a little scary.  I mean, he was a nice guy and a fan, but he could have been a nut job.  I couldn’t have protected myself from him, he was huge.   I wasn’t even sure if YOU could have taken him.”

They drove quietly for several miles.  Sean spoke quietly.  “Maybe once we get home, you can come take classes at the studio.  You can learn how to defend yourself if you need to.  I’ve always felt kind of guilty for not teaching you stuff when the shit with Kevin went down.  What do you think?”

Riley was quiet for so long, that Sean thought she wasn’t going to answer.  Then very quietly, he heard, “Yeah.  Maybe….maybe that’s a good idea.”

Sean relaxed after she said that.  He couldn’t be with her 24/7, as much as he wanted to.  He couldn’t always protect her, but he’d feel better knowing she could protect herself.   
“By the way,” she added softly, “it wouldn’t have helped.  That second time, he was in disguise so he could get close and he whacked me in the head with a metal baton when I tried to run away.  Even with defensive techniques, he could have just broken my arms or something and still got me.  You could not have prevented it.  I don’t ever want to hear you say you feel responsible or guilty ever again.  Understand?”  She took her eyes off the road for a moment to look at him.

“You’re right angel.  One person at fault: him.”   
  


At about 4 p.m., Sean told her to pull off at the next exit so they could get gas and stretch their legs.  “I don’t think I can maneuver this next to a gas pump,” she told him as the station came into view.   
“Okay, pull in off to the side of the building and stop.  I can take over and go around to the gas pumps.”

 

She pulled up where he told her, and hopped out to use the bathroom while he pulled around and got the gas.  She went inside and grabbed a couple of bottles of water and got some peanut butter cups for Sean.  The bored young girl behind the counter barely glanced up at her from her copy of Vogue.

They were back on the road in minutes, Riley driving again.

After finding only budget motels after passing Memphis, they decided to go on to Little Rock.  Sean got on his phone and got them a room at a place called The Capital Hotel.  He asked about the trailer and they told him that the valet would take care of it, they were used to travelers passing through.

Following the directions from the GPS, Riley saw the hotel in the distance.  “Sean, that place looks kinda...fancy.”   
“I told you I was going to violate you across the US, and I wasn’t going to do it in a cheap dive, angel.”   
“But look at how I’m dressed!”  Riley was wearing little denim cutoffs, her Converse, and a tank top.  “They aren’t going to let me in the door!”   
“Baby, I’ve stayed at this hotel before.  They don’t care how you’re dressed.  I’m not much better.”   
“You look...I don’t know….neater.”   
Sean was wearing a pair of tan shorts, a black HBJJ t-shirt, and also his Converse.   
“Baby, it will be fine.”

 

Riley pulled up to the front of the hotel, and a valet opened her door and helped her out.  “Good evening, miss!  We were told someone was coming with a vehicle trailer.  I’ll take it from here for you,” he told her as Sean handed their suitcases to another employee.  Riley looked up at Herbie on his trailer, and told the valet, “Please be careful.  This car means a lot to me….” she trailed off, feeling stupid.  The valet told her, “Miss, I understand completely.  I used to drive trucks that delivered cars to car lots,” he smiled at her and whispered, “I call my car Bertha.”   
She smiled and said, “That’s Herbie.”   
“Well I promise you I will treat Herbie with the utmost care and respect.”

Riley nodded and the valet drove off.  Sean was just coming out to find her.  “I thought you were right behind me.”   
“Sorry.  I wanted to make sure Herbie was in good hands.”

 

They walked in, and Sean was correct.  The staff was very nice.  They passed a few employees, who gave them cheerful hellos.

They checked in at the front desk and Sean asked, “What time does the hotel restaurant close?”

The girl at the desk said, “At 9 p.m., you just missed it.  But we have 24 hour room service, and also, there’s a family-style steakhouse just up the road a few miles.  Maybe a $5 cab ride.”   
Sean looked at Riley and she nodded.  They were both starving.  They dropped their bags off in their room, went back outside and got in a cab and headed to the steakhouse for a real meal.


	66. Chapter 66

They were sitting in a booth waiting for their food.  The steakhouse was nice, if dimly lit, lots of families, and everyone dressed as casually as they were.  Sean put his arm around Riley, and she leaned her head on his shoulder.

“You tired, princess?”   
“Nah, just glad we’re stopped for the night.”   
“Yeah, I’ll try to plan tomorrow a little better.  I was sure we’d find some mid-range place in between the big towns.  I guess I didn’t think it through as well as I’d thought.”

 

The waitress came with their food, and they began eating.  Sean had his left hand on Riley’s knee underneath the table, his thumb gently rubbing back and forth.  It was completely innocent….at first.

The closer they got to the end of their meal, the higher he moved his hand on her thigh.  By the time they were done, his hand was on the crotch of her shorts.   
“Sean!” she hissed.

“What?  There’s a tablecloth, nobody can see.  It looks like I have my hand on your knee, if anything.”

He started rubbing his hand on her crotch gently several times, then told her quietly, “Unbutton and unzip your shorts, angel.”

The restaurant was noisy with Saturday night traffic, plus there was a bar on one side of the large building, adding to the noise.  But Riley heard him.  She turned to look at him, saying, “Are you crazy?”   
“Nobody can see, nobody is paying us any attention.”  

Riley looked around and he was right.  Everybody was wrapped up in what was going on at their own table.   
“Besides,” he continued, “I’m not asking you to take them off.”

 

She hesitated, and he asked,  “You’re not afraid, are you, princess?”   
That asshole.  He knew she wouldn’t back down from that.  Riley let her hands slide to her lap casually, and undid her shorts.  Sean moved so he was right up against her side on the bench seat.  “Put your hands back on the table, little girl,” he said quietly.  Riley did as she was told, and Sean slid his hand down the front of her shorts and under her panties easily.  She opened her legs a bit, so he could find her clit.  He leaned over, whispering in her ear, “Good girl,” then pulling back and kissing her gently on the lips.  To anyone else, they just looked like a couple in love, out for dinner.

Sean rested his chin on one hand and looked out at the restaurant nonchalantly.  The hand in Riley’s panties used two fingers to spread her pussy lips apart, and one finger began to slide gently back and forth across the hard button of her clit.  Riley’s body gave an involuntary jerk at the contact.  Just then the waitress came to take their plates.  “Would you like to see a dessert menu?” she asked cheerfully.

“Why yes we would, thank you,” Sean replied.

The waitress was back in just a few seconds with the menu, and rattled off a few dessert specials, then promised to be back shortly so they could check the menu.  Sean, the bastard was acting totally normal, like he wasn’t trying to make her cum at the table in a busy restaurant.  “Oh look, Ri, they have strawberry shortcake.  Want to split it with me?”  She turned to glare at him and he just smirked, then sped up his finger.

The waitress came back and Sean ordered one strawberry shortcake with two forks.  Riley was getting close to orgasm by the time the waitress brought it back, saying, “I hope you enjoy it.”  Sean said, “Don’t worry we will!”

Riley leaned over and whispered in Sean’s ear, “I think I’m gonna cum…”

Sean pressed two fingers against her and started to pulse them rapidly.  He whispered, “Can you be quiet, like a good little girl?”   
“Yes sir, I know I can.”

“The cum for me like the dirty little bitch you are,” he said softly, with his gaze locked on hers.

 

Sean had to hand it to her, she hid it well.  He could feel her clit popping in and out as she came, as well as the little shudders her body gave off.  She bit her lip and lowered her head, trying to control her breathing.  Slowly, he drew his hand from her panties, and as she watched, dragged his wet finger through the whipped cream on the shortcake and licked it clean.  Smiling, he said, “Now that’s a real dessert.”  He pulled her close.  “You did good, baby.”   
“Please don’t do that to me again.” 

He pulled back and looked at her.  She wasn’t happy.

“What’s going on, Ri?”

“That was humiliating,” she said, fastening her shorts.  “I’m glad you were entertained by your performing monkey girlfriend,” she said bitterly, grabbing her purse.  “I’m going to the ladies room, I’ll be back.”

She walked away before he could say another word.

 

The waitress came by to see if they wanted anything else, and Sean gave her his credit card to pay the check.  He sat at the table and thought about what Riley said.  He hadn’t meant to humiliate her, and he surely didn’t think of her as a trained monkey.  At the same time, he could see her point.  When he got dominant, she never questioned him.  But she had also said that she knew she could say no.  He shook his head.  He was in the wrong.  No, this wasn’t her fault.

 

In the ladies room, Riley used one of the toilets and washed her hands.  She stood looking at herself in the mirror.  What she had said to Sean wasn’t fair.  She could have told him no, but she didn’t.  The most public she ever gotten were times where there weren’t really any people: the pool, the car up on Mulholland Drive, even when they were driving home from the airport that time and Sean had his hand down her shorts.  The windows of his car were tinted.  She didn’t feel so...exposed.  But again, she would have been within her rights to stop him, and he wouldn’t have pushed it.  She needed to speak up.  She was in the wrong.  No, this wasn’t his fault.

 

After a few minutes, she walked back to the table, and saw him signing the check.  When he saw her, he got up and walked to her.

Sean said, “Baby, I’m really sorry...”   
Just as Riley said, “I’m sorry, Sean, I….”

They stopped short and looked at each other, and both started to laugh.  Sean said, “Why don’t we catch a cab back and talk about this at the hotel?”  Riley nodded.

Back at the hotel, they had a good long talk.  Sean made sure that Riley knew that she could say no, and apologized for challenging her.  “I had no right to do that,” he told her.  “I knew you wouldn’t back down, and I was wrong to manipulate you like that.”

“Well, I should have told you no to begin with.  We both made mistakes.”   
“Yes.  But I’m glad that now I know what your boundaries are.  I won’t make a mistake like that again.”   
“And I won’t expect you to read my damn mind.”

 

Riley smiled at him.  “You know, I never really got any dessert,” she said looking pointedly at his crotch.

“After all that you still like me, huh?” 

She looked at him critically.  “We are humans.  As such, we are NOT perfect.  But at least we talk it out.  We need to always do that.  We can be mad or upset at first like I was, as long as we talk about it.  Promise me we will, Sean.”   
“Of course, princess.  Always.”

 

She gave him a smile that set his soul on fire and started to sink down to her knees, but he stopped her.  “No way.  I said I was going to violate you across the country, and I meant it.”   
Before Riley knew what was happening, he had pulled her little tank top off over her head.  She giggled and pulled off his HBJJ shirt, tossing it over her shoulder.  Sean gave her a gentle push and she sat on the bed, and he pulled off her shoes and socks, then removed his own.  He looked down at her little feet and told her, “I need to do your toes again.  The polish is chipped.”  He pulled her back into a standing position and they simultaneously worked on getting each others shorts off.  Then Riley’s bra and panties and Sean’s boxer briefs.  Sean told her, “Remember, you can say no.”   
“If I need to I will.”

Riley turned and crawled onto the bed on all fours.  She moved to turn over, but Sean said, “Don’t move.”

Riley stayed on her hands and knees, looking over her shoulder.  Sean told her, “That little bit of light from the lamp is hitting you just right.  I can see how wet you are.  You’re fucking glistening.”

He crawled up behind her, and ran his hands up the back of her thighs, spreading her open at the top.  Riley could hear Sean breathing heavy, and he whispered, “Fucking beautiful.  So god damn perfect.”

He leaned over and gave her a few quick licks, then slid onto her from behind.  Riley let out a small moan, and leant down, pressing her shoulders into the mattress as Sean bottomed out inside of her.   
Her knees were spread wide, and he nudged them closer together.  He took a deep breath and started fucking her agonizingly slow.  “Been waiting for this since Thursday,” he told her.

Riley replied, “Now you can fuck me every day if you want to.”   
“God damn right I will,” he muttered, grabbing her hips.  “Every fucking day.”  He wanted to spend the rest of his life with his cock buried inside of her 24/7.  Grabbing her by her hair and pulling her up against him, he practically growled at her, “I’m going to fuck you in every room in that house and on every single stick of furniture.  Christen that house as OURS.”  He pushed her back down and started to piston into her.  “You understand me, girl?”   
“Fuck yes!” she cried out.  “Anything you want!  I love you so much, Sean….”

 

They were both starting to sweat, and Riley had her hands against the headboard, pushing back on Sean.  “Can I cum on you, babygirl?  I wanna mark you.  Wanna blow my load all over that perfect fucking ass of yours.  Can I, Riley?”

“Yes!”

He knew she wasn’t going to cum yet, but he had to.  He pulled out, spread her asscheeks, and put just the head of his dick between them, squeezing them shut, and came all over her asshole.  He felt Riley relax her ass and let some of his cum dribble in, as she hissed out softly, “Oh...my...god….yes…”

Sean let the head of his cock fall out.  Moving fast, he gathered up a load of his cum on his finger, and using it as lube, slowly pushed it into Riley’s ass.  She gasped, and at first her ass tensed up.  Sean whispered, “Give it to me, Ri.  Please.”  She took a few deep breaths, and Sean was able to push his finger in.  “Good girl,” he praised her, rubbing circles on her back with his free hand.  “Such a good girl…”

He knew she hadn’t cum yet.  He reached underneath her, and found her quivering clit.  Barely brushing it with his fingertips, Riley let out a loud moan.  “That’s it, babygirl.  I didn’t forget. Gonna get you off, I’ll never leave you hanging, I promise.  Daddy’s gonna make you cum nice and hard.  You want that?”   
“Yes!  Please daddy!”

Sean smiled.  He loved daddy kink.  Seemed like Riley was good with it too.  God, he loved this woman!   
Rubbing her clit while slowly working his finger in and out of her asshole, he asked her, “Do you like the idea of calling me daddy sometimes?”   
“Yes.”   
“Good.  Because I like hearing you say it.  Say it again.”   
“Daddy.”

He sped up his fingers, and Riley moved her hips in time with them.   
“Again, dirty girl.”   
“Daddy!”

“Remember you have to ask daddy before you can cum.”   
“I will, daddy, I promise.”   
“Such a good little girl.  Daddy’s little whore.”

 

Sean’s cum was still running down her thigh.  He pulled his finger out of her asshole, coating it with more cum and pushed it back in, more easily this time.  He sped up his ministrations even more.  Riley pushed herself up on all fours and was rocking against his hands, whispering, “Oh yes, yes, yes daddy…”

“Do you want to cum?”   
“Yes!” 

Sean stopped.  “Yes what?”   
“Yes, daddy, PLEASE!”

“That’s my good girl.  Daddy’s girl.  Ask to cum, princess.  Ask daddy’s permission.”   
“Please, daddy, PLEASE let me cum, PLEASE!”

“Yes, Riley.  Daddy says you can cum like a good little whore.”  He gave her clit a pinch and that set off her orgasm.  As soon as her little body began to convulse, he shoved a second finger into her ass, causing her to yelp out, “Daddy!”   
“Take it, bitch!”

“Yes, daddy!” she managed to cry out as she convulsed through her orgasm.

 

He watched her body from behind as she thrashed and moaned.  He wondered briefly if anyone was in the room next door, then decided he didn’t really give a shit.  All that mattered in the world was right in front of him: his princess twitching through the last of her orgasm.     
Spent, Riley collapsed on the bed, panting.  His two fingers still deep in her ass, he asked her, “What do you say, little girl?”   
She smiled at him over her shoulder and said, “Thank you, daddy.  I love you.”

He smiled back at her and leaned down to kiss her cheek as he slid his fingers out of her ass.  “I love you too, princess.  More than you know.”

 

He went to the bathroom and washed his hands, then climbed into bed and Riley curled up next to him.  He said, “I’m so going to fuck that ass when we get home.”   
“No, you’re not.”   
He looked down at her, surprised.  “Why not?”   
“Because you’re going to fuck my ass BEFORE we get home.”   
  
So full of surprises, that girl.


	67. Chapter 67

Sean woke before Riley, for once, and took a quick shower.  Shaking her gently, he woke her.  “Riley, time to get up.  We gotta hit the road in a few hours.  I was going to order room service for breakfast.”

She rolled over in the bed, looking rumpled and adorable.  “I’m so tired.”

“Did I wear you out?” he asked, smiling.

“Yeah…”

 

He had her pick out what she wanted and she got into the shower.  When she got out the food was already there.  Sean watched her drink some coffee, and said, “I’ll take the first shift driving.  See if you can get some more shut eye in the car, sleepy baby.”

She smiled at him.  “I won’t argue.”

 

They checked out and were on the road.  Riley slept soundly, even through a stop to get gas, until lunch.  Sean pulled into a truck stop and parked.  Unbuckling his seatbelt, he slid across to Riley’s partially reclined seat, and tickled her nose.  Sean’s heart melted as she rubbed it in her sleep, like a little baby.  “Time to wake up, Sleeping Beauty.”

Riley’s eyes fluttered open slowly and focused on Sean and she smiled.  “Is it time for gas?”   
“Nope, you slept through that.  It’s time for lunch.  Found us a little truck stop.  You hungry?”

Riley nodded, rubbing her eyes and stretching.  That nap was perfect.  

They went in and were seated.  No stares this time - Riley was wearing yoga pants and a t-shirt.  Well, HE stared, her ass looked awesome in those pants.  He was going to have to buy her a wardrobe of them.

They placed their orders, and Sean started fiddling with his phone.  “I think we can make Amarillo, Texas between 5 and 6 p.m.  How does that sound?”   
“That early?”   
“Yeah, I don’t want us to drive until 9 o’clock again.  This way, we can stop, eat a nice dinner, rest, I can thoroughly violate you, and we can still get a good night’s sleep.”

“Haha.”

 

While they ate, Sean looked for hotels.  He found a Courtyard Marriot, despite Riley’s insistence that someplace like a Red Roof Inn would be fine.  “Nope,” he told her.  “Not fit for my princess.”   
“You really are spoiling me.”   
He smiled at her across the table.  “I like spoiling you.  I’d think by now you’d be used to it.”   
Riley just shook her head.

Sean took her hand.  “Princess, I do this for you because I want to, I like to, and you deserve it.  I know you’ve struggled a lot in your life.  You don’t have to struggle so much now.  I make enough between acting and the martial arts studio for us to be very comfortable.  If I stopped getting jobs tomorrow and the studio burned down, we might have to rein it in a bit, but I have good insurance on the business, and a good nest egg.  I love you, Riley.  Let me spoil you.  Let me do things like stay in a fancier hotel with you.  These are all small things.  I invited you to this party, so it’s on me.  Okay?”

Riley smiled at him and squeezed his hand.  “Okay.”

“‘Atta girl.”

 

He called the hotel to make a reservation for later.  “Yes I’d like to reserve a room for tonight if possible….1 bed, 2 adults….we’ll be checking in between 5 and 6, and we have a car with a tow trailer, will that be a problem?  Okay, great…..non-smoking….just one night...special requests?  Not near an elevator if possible….also, if the rooms around us were empty, that would be great because we’re newlyweds, so, y’know…”   
Riley eyes got big and she threw a french fry at him.  He ducked it, giggling, and stuck his tongue out at her.

After a few more minutes her hung up the phone.  “Okay, they have a room reserved for us.  What?” he asked as Riley glared at him.

“You can be so embarrassing.”   
“Oh really?  Well, she is giving us a private room at the end of the hall, with the promise that we ‘newlyweds’ won’t be disturbed and the rooms, above, below, and next door are ALL EMPTY.”

“You’re kidding me.”   
“No, little miss french fry thrower.”

 

After they paid, Sean went over to the little shop to get some water and snacks for the drive while Riley used the restroom.  Sean was walking down the little aisles when a display of tiny jars of Vaseline caught his eye.  Well, she *did* say he was going to fuck her ass before they got home….it couldn’t hurt to be prepared.  He paid for everything, went out to the car, and slipped the Vaseline into his bag.

Riley came out of the building, deep in thought.  She told him, “I’ll drive for awhile,” but he wouldn’t move from where he was leaning against the driver’s side door.  “Not until you tell me what’s on your mind.  Not letting you drive when you seem to be very distracted.”   
“Big words coming from a guy who drove down a highway with one hand down my pants,” she said with some bitterness.

“Ok Riley.  What’s going on?  Did somebody in there say something to you?”

“No.  It’s stupid.  Let’s just go.”  She attempted to open the door with Sean still leaning against it.  He stood with his arms crossed looking at her.  “Come on, sweetie.  Talk to me.”

Riley ran a hand through her dark hair and heaved a sigh.  “Everything is going really well.”

Sean waited for her to continue, but that was all she said.  “Angel, you gotta give me a little bit more than that.”   
Riley looked at him.  “I’m just waiting for it to go bad.”   
“What?” Sean was shocked.  “Why would you even think that way?”   
“Because every time things start to go really well in my life, something bad happens.  I get asked on a date, and the guy tries to kill me.  I offer myself up to you, and you reject me.  I try to spend some time alone, and I almost get killed again.  You come back to me, then leave again.  I’m scared of whatever bad thing is coming.”

“Jesus, Riley,” Sean said taking her in his arms.  “You just had a run of weird luck.  And also, I was an asshole, and we all know that.  Nothing bad is going to happen, sweet girl.”

“But I’m getting everything I ever wanted. The dream job, the hot guy, the beautiful home...”

“Did you ever see ‘Willy Wonka’?”   
Riley gave him a strange look.  “Um, yeah.  What’s that got to do with anything?”

Sean quoted the movie.  “‘Don’t forget what happened to the man who suddenly got everything he wanted...He lived happily ever after.’  It’s high time you got to have your happily ever after, Ri.  Because with you, I definitely feel like I’m getting mine.  And I may not be Prince Charming, but I’m trying.”   
Riley felt foolish.  He was trying.  Trying every single day to just love her and do right by her, and here she was, looking for something to go wrong.  Sean couldn’t blame her, he’d left her so many times.  But he wasn’t leaving her anymore.  And it was hurting him to know that she thought that any minute, things would go wrong.  That she thought that he wouldn’t sell his very soul to make her happy.

She saw the hurt in his eyes.  “Oh god, Seanie, I’m so sorry.”  She put her arms around him.  “You’re absolutely right.  I’m being a worrywart and worrying about nothing.”   
“It’s okay, baby, it’s just that….I know I screwed up.  A whole bunch of times.  But please, please….give me a break.  I don’t know what else I can do to make it up to you.”  He pulled away and looked at her.  He looked like he was going to cry.  “I’ve done all I can think of, angel.  What do you want me to do?  Just tell me.  I’ll do anything.”

Riley started to cry, her heart breaking.  “Stop.  You don’t need to do anything.  You’ve paid for your mistakes a hundred times over.  I love you.  I want to be with you. I’m scared, I admit it.  But my god, I need to stop with this.  Seanie, I love you.  I’m sorry.  Sometimes I just get stupid.”

He held her close again.  “Shh….  We’re probably gonna have hiccups like this now and then.  We just have to remember that.  And it’s okay.  You just need to stop expecting the bad and start accepting the good.  Can you try doing that for me?”

Riley sniffled and nodded yes.   
“Okay.  Now get your cute butt in the car, princess.  I’ll drive for a while longer.  You’re all teary eyed.”   
Riley walked around to the passenger side and climbed in.  Sean kissed her hand.  “I love you, Princess Riley.”   
“I love you, too, Prince Charming.”

 

Sean took over the driving until they stopped for gas, then they switched.  Following the GPS, Riley drove them right to the hotel, and the valet took over.  They checked in, dropped off the bags in their room, and went down to the restaurant.  Sean had done some more calculating on his phone.  They could make it to Flagstaff, Arizona by tomorrow.  “And then,” he smiled, “the day after tomorrow, we’re home.”

Riley’s face lit up when he said that.  “Home,” she said.  “OUR home.”   
Sean took her hand across the table.  “Yes, baby.  Our home.  You okay with staying at the DoubleTree tomorrow night?  Not as fancy as I’d like, but….”   
“Sean, it’s fine.  Anyplace is fine.  You know that.”

 

After dinner, they headed up to their room and lounged around for a bit watching a movie, their bellies too full to do anything else.  Sean suggested that they continue getting room service breakfasts.  It was easier than getting in the car and driving on an empty stomach and trying to find somewhere “decent” to eat.  It saved them time from having to stop as well.  So Sean would get up about 7, take his shower, wake Riley, order food, then Riley would take her shower, and the food would be there by the time she got out.

He went ahead and booked a room for the next night at the DoubleTree in Flagstaff.  Soon, he would be back home with his baby, permanently.  Sean smiled as he remembered that he would never have to watch her walk down that damn airport hallway again.  He would never have to watch her looking back at him from the security line again and again, as if he would leave before he had to.  He would never have to be several states away from her again.     
Riley turned and looked at him.  “What are you smiling at?”   
“The fact that we’re almost home.  And that we don’t have to be apart anymore.”   
“That’s not true.”   
Sean turned off the TV and looked at her.  “What are you talking about? Yes it is.”

“No, it isn’t.  You’ll still have to go make movies and go to cons, and I won’t always be able to go with you.”   
“Why the Hell not?” Sean was getting irritated.

“With Hachette pushing my book so hard, what if I have a con?  Or an interview?  Something that conflicts?  Would you really want me to give that up?  That’s the whole reason I’m here: they bought the book.” 

He ran a hand through his hair.  He hadn’t thought about that.  It was bound to happen sooner or later.  She might go to a con with him a few times, but it was bound to get boring.  He’d be busy all day, and exhausted at night.  That wouldn’t be fair.  And if he did another movie like the last one, if she came to set, he’d be working 14 hour days, 6 days a week.  Again, not fair.

“Seanie?” Riley looked worried.  “I’m not giving you second thoughts, am I?”

 

Sean snapped out of his daze.  “No, baby.  Absolutely not.  But you’re right.  We will be apart again at some point, and that’s going to suck big time.  But I guess as long as I know you’re home waiting or coming home….it will be a little more bearable.  Knowing you’re living in our house and sleeping in our bed…..that makes all the difference.”

He got out his phone and took a selfie of them together, captioning it, “Yeehaw from somewhere in Texas!  Taking my Georgia peach to California with me!  We won’t have to be apart when she’s living in my house!”  He posted it to Instagram and Twitter, and his feed blew up almost immediately.  Everything from “Hooray!” to “FUCK THAT BITCH!  I should be living with him!  I’m prettier!”  Riley just laughed, telling Sean, “An ugly soul cancels out even the prettiest face!”   
“You got that right!”

He shut off his phone except for the alarm, and plugged them both in on his nightstand to charge overnight.

He rolled back over and looked at her with a wicked smile.  “Hey cutie.  Wanna fool around?”


	68. Chapter 68

“Do I wanna fool around?  Do you really need to ask?” Riley told him as she pulled him close.  She kissed him before he could answer.  Sean pulled away and just said, “Well, I said I would violate you across America, but you can say no.  If you’re tired, or not in the mood-”   
“Sean, shut up.  I know that,” Riley said as she started kissing him again.

Sean pulled her on top of him and grabbed her ass.  “I need to get you more of these pants.  Your ass is so fucking hot in them.”

Riley smiled at him between kisses and said, “I actually have a little pair of sleep shorts made of the same material, but I’ve been sleeping naked with you.”

He rolled over on top of her, then climbed off, sliding her yoga pants and panties off as he went.  “I do love you naked…”

She sat up smiling and pulled off her shirt and bra as he quickly undressed.  Turning off all of the lights, he opened the curtains at the sliding glass doors.  He kept the sheer curtains closed, and looked out at the skyline of the city of Amarillo.  It was nothing like L.A., of course, but it was still nice.  Riley was sitting on the bed naked, watching him.  “Come here, pretty girl.”

 

She walked over to Sean, but balked at the open window.  “No one can see us, angel, I promise.  Lights are off in here, and the closest building is far enough away.”

Riley stepped a bit closer.  “Are you sure?”   
“Yes.  Also the sheers keep them from seeing us.  I would never lie to you.  But if this makes you uncomfortable, I can close them.  Remember, Ri.  You can say no.”   
Riley eyed the buildings.  Offices, and the lights were on in some.  But she couldn’t see far enough to see inside, so conversely, neither could anyone in them see her.  “It’s ok,” she told Sean, and he pulled her close.

“My beautiful, sweet Riley,” he whispered.  “I still think it’s a dream, that I’ll wake up and we won’t be together.  Did you know that I have nightmares about that, Ri?”

She looked up at him and shook her head.     
He continued, “I’ve dreamt that we were never together, that I’m living at Norman’s like I was in the beginning, but that us being together was a dream.  And other times I dreamed that we never made up.  And that you moved on.  That’s the worst one, because I know I missed my chance.”  Sean sounded absolutely broken hearted.

“But you didn’t,” Riley reminded him.  “I’m here with you.  We’re here together.  WE are moving on.  Together.”

He looked down at her sweet face that he knew he would never get tired of.  There was a little desk near the sliding glass doors where they were standing.  He leaned down and kissed her, then turned her and gently bent her over the desk.  She obediently spread her legs, and Sean grabbed her arms and pinned them behind her back with one of his.  She had her face turned to the window.  He said to her quietly, “Do not move, do not turn your head.  Understand?”

Riley kept her eyes glued to the window, and replied, “Yes, sir.”

Sean didn’t realize his dick could get even harder until that moment.

 

He released her arms, but she kept them clasped together behind her back.  Sean softly said, “Good girl,” and made his way over to his bag, pulling out the tiny jar of Vaseline, and putting it on the table where Riley couldn’t see it.  He resumed his spot behind her, stroking his big hands up and down her thighs without saying a word.  Then he whispered, “Do you want me, Riley?”

“Yes.”   
“Tell me.”   
“I want you, Sean.  I love you.  Always.”   
He would never get tired of hearing her say those things.

 

Rubbing the head of his cock against her opening, she started to fidget. “Uh uh, little girl.  Be patient,” he told her, even though he was dying to just sink into her.  He ran his big hands up her back and grabbed onto her shoulders, looking down at her hands still obediently clasped behind her back.  “Hold on to the desk angel.  Do not get up and do not look away from the window, do you understand?”   
“Yes sir,” she replied as she braced her hands against the edge of the desk.

Sean positioned the head of his cock against her opening, and using her shoulders, slowly pulled her back onto him.  He closed his eyes and stilled inside her, then started sliding in and out.   
“Fuck, Sean, that feels good.”   
“You like that, babygirl?”   
“Mmm, yes….”

 

Sean let go of her shoulders, and reached down, spreading her ass cheeks open.  “Gonna play with your ass, okay, baby?”

He watched a smile cross her face as she said, “Yes, daddy.”

“Good girl,” he whispered.

 

He opened the jar of Vaseline and dipped his index finger in, coating it.  Spreading her ass cheeks again with one big hand, he placed his finger against her rosebud, and she jumped.  “It’s just some Vaseline, Riley. Nothing to be afraid of, trying to make it a little easier for you.”   
“Thank you, daddy.”

Slowly, he pushed his finger in, and it slid in easy thanks to the lubrication.  Perfect.

Riley focused her eyes on one window in a building far away, and took a few deep breaths to relax.  It really did feel better and easier with the lube.

“Is that okay?” Sean asked her.

“Yeah, much better with it than without.”   
“Good.  I never want to hurt you, babygirl.  I love you.”   
“I know.  Love you too.”

Riley started to push back against him faster and harder.  He muttered out, “Daddy’s dirty little girl, aren’t you?”   
“Yes...”

 

Grabbing the Vaseline, he dipped in his middle finger, then slid it in along with the first.  RIley momentarily stopped thrusting and let out a deep groan.

“Ri?  You okay?”   
“Yeah….so full.”   
“Too much?”   
Riley’s answer was to start rocking back against him, harder, shocking him.  She was grunting like an animal.  Suddenly, she stopped, and reached behind her to push him away.  Standing and turning to look at Sean, she grabbed him by the hair and pulled him to her in a hot, open mouthed kiss, sliding her tongue into his mouth.  Pulling away just as quickly, she climbed onto the bed, ass in the air, shoulders on the mattress, and told him, “Fuck my ass.”

To say he was shocked was an understatement.  “You sure, Ri?”   
“Yeah, I need it,” she whimpered.  “Use lots of Vaseline, but I need it bad, daddy.”   
  


Grabbing the jar of Vaseline, he stood next to the bed, where she could see him.  He slicked up his cock generously.  He was going to fuck a virgin ass, something he’d never had.  “Daddy’s gonna take good care of his little girl,” he told her, climbing onto the bed behind her.  “Gonna fill up that tight little ass of yours with my cock and my cum.  Make you mine.”  He could see his words making her wet, and told her, “Play with your pussy, Ri, show daddy what a bad girl you are.”

Sean watched as Riley reached under her body and fingered her folds, gathering moisture, then started circling her clit.  “That’s good, babygirl.  Real good.  Nice and relaxed. You ready for daddy to break that cherry in your ass?”   
“Mmmm, yes daddy.”

 

He spread her ass cheeks again.  Even though his cock was thoroughly coated, he put a generous amount on his finger, and spread it all over her tight, pink little asshole.  She jumped when he did it, and he calmed her.  “Easy, baby.  Daddy’s just getting you nice and lubed up.”  Taking a deep breath, he placed the head of his cock against her virgin hole.  She stiffened, then relaxed.  Sean could hear her taking slow, deep breaths.  

 

He pushed against her firmly.  Slowly, he watched her open and stretch to accommodate him.  He got the mushroom tip of the head in, and Riley cried out, “Daddy!”

“Shh, shh, baby.  Does it hurt too much?”

It didn’t really hurt, it felt slightly uncomfortable and very foreign, and she told him.  But she also wanted more, and she told him that, as well. 

Sean grabbed her hips tightly.  “Are you daddy’s little whore?”

“Yes!”

“Damn right you are,” he growled, sliding in another inch.

 

Riley was surprised at how it felt.  It was feeling less uncomfortable, and just..different.

 

Sean pushed in another inch and watched as some of the excessive amount of lube he’d used got pushed out of her super tightness and ran down her thighs.  He almost blew his wad right there, but quickly reached down, squeezing his cock tightly at the base.  He didn’t want to cum until his cock was completely in her ass.

He pushed in another inch, making Riley cry out.   
“Do I need to pull out?” he asked.   
“No,” she replied quickly, “I just wasn’t quite ready.  I’m okay now.”

 

Slow, steady, and painful in the most wonderful way, he pushed his cock the rest of the way in.  He looked down at her hole, bright red and stretched to it’s limit.  He pulled back just slightly and thrust back in violently, holding onto her hips tightly, and making her cry out.   
“Sorry, baby.  Daddy needed to do that.  Remind you who you belong to.”   
“I belong to you, daddy.  All of me.  Always.”

“Fuck Riley, you’re so stretched out.  Grab my phone, I want you to see this.”   
  


Riley reached over to the nightstand, and handed him his phone.  As he took it from her, he told her, “I will erase this immediately.  I just want you to see it.”  He leaned back and pulled his cock out slightly, taking a picture, then showing it to her. “See what a dirty fucking whore you are for daddy?”

She looked at the picture and smiled.  As Sean deleted it, she told him, “Fuck my ass, nice and hard until you cum.”  She was fingering herself again.

 

Sean leaned over her back and growled, “I am going to fucking destroy you, you filthy little bitch.”

He grabbed her hips so hard, he knew he would leave bruises.  Pulling almost completely out, he slammed back into her tight little hole.  The tightness was almost too much, and he knew it would not take long.

 

He rammed into her violently, hearing her cry out in both pleasure and pain, and too far gone to care.  They were both covered in sweat, and Sean was fixated on watching more and more of the lube being forced out of that tiny hole all around his cock.

Riley cried out, “Daddy! God, I love it!  I need to cum!”

He roared out, “TAKE IT ALL, DIRTY BITCH!”

Sean unloaded into her ass, one hot jet after another.  He came so hard, he was sure his balls would be drier than the desert.  Even after he couldn’t cum anymore, his body twitched and jerked.  Pulling his cock out, he saw her hand buried inside her pussy, three fingers deep, and completely soaked.  Leaning down, her pulled her hand out, muttering, “Mine,” and licked her fingers clean.  Straightening up, he watched the mess of cum and lube dribble out of her ass, and was surprised at how hot it was.  Making his way to the bathroom on shaking legs, he relieved himself, then ran a washcloth under lukewarm water and wrung it out.  He climbed back on the bed behind her, and cleaned up the mess he’d left behind.  “Are you okay, baby?” he asked her, as she hadn’t moved yet.

“Yes, daddy,” she replied in a small voice.

 

Sean finished cleaning her up, rinsed out the washcloth, and hung it over the edge of the tub.  In the bedroom, Riley was laying on her stomach, and he climbed on the bed next to her.  “Riley, I need you to know that no matter what bad or dirty things I call you during sex, I don’t mean them.  You know that, right?”

She just nodded.

It was obvious that what had happened had been rather intense.  He lay close her to her, nose to nose.  “I know that was a lot, Riley.  What do you need?”   
“Would you...would you tell me a story?”

 

Sean smiled at her.  He turned over and opened his arms for her to climb into.  Holding her and stroking her hair, he spoke softly.  “Once upon a time, in a far away land, there was a  beautiful and benevolent princess.  Her name was Princess Riley…”


	69. Chapter 69

Sean told her a little made up story about the heroic Princess Riley, who saved her people from a terrible dragon (he really wasn’t terrible, he just had a toothache).  By the time he was done, she was fast asleep.  He just wanted to cry tears of joy and relief that she was there with him.  When they got home, he was getting an alarm system installed in the house.  He wasn’t taking any chances with her safety.  Paul Bunyan had scared the crap out of her, that was obvious.  Even Sean had been a little nervous.  Yes, he was well trained, but that guy was HUGE.  Even Kevin, who was someone he should have been able to beat, got the drop on him.  He loved her far too much to risk losing her again.

It seemed like he’d just barely closed his eyes when his alarm went off.  Riley stirred, then fell back asleep as he slid out of bed and took his shower.  He got out and woke Riley, laying on her tummy, and she gave him a sleepy smile.  “Good morning, princess.  You need to let me know what you want for breakfast.  “Okay,” she said as he handed her the little menu.  She looked it over and told him what she wanted, then crawled out of bed to head to the shower.  Sean stopped her, reminding her to clean herself very well, due to them having used so much Vaseline.  “It’s definitely not going to hurt you,” he told her, “but it might make you feel kind of….”   
“Slimy?” she offered.

“Yeah.”

 

Sean watched her cute little ass wiggle into the bathroom and he called in the food.  She came out dressed adorably in a pair of capri pants and a v neck t shirt, with her hair still damp.  Kissing Sean hello, she plopped down at the little table where he’d put their breakfast - and jumped right back up with a cry of pain.

Sean jumped up immediately.  “What’s wrong?  Are you ok?  Did you sit on something?”  Riley was pouting and rubbing her little tush.  “I don’t know.  Sean, it HURTS.”

Sean investigated the chair, brushing his hand over it.  “I don’t think there’s anything on here.”

He turned to her and she said, “No, it hurts...inside.  From last night.  It didn’t hurt until I sat down.”

Sean felt horrible.  “Here,” he told her.  “Take my hands and try sitting down gently.”  Riley did, but it still hurt.  They tried the bed, and that was better, but she was still hurting.     
“Sean, I can’t ride in a car like this, and we need to get home.”  Poor Riley was near tears.     
“Ok, sweetie, calm down.  Let me see what I can do.  Go ahead and eat your breakfast.”  He pulled out his phone and did a little research.  He must have found something, because he said, “I need you to wait here, I need to go buy something.  I’ll be back as soon as I can, okay?”

“Okay…..”

 

Sean got the car from the valet, and asked where the nearest CVS or Walgreens was, someplace with a pharmacy department.  The guy told him, “Well, there’s a Target just a few miles up the road.  They’ve got a pretty big pharmacy.” 

He drove off with Herbie on the back.  He found the Target, and parked way out in the far reaches of the lot, so he could park lengthwise across a few spots.  Jogging across the parking lot, he went inside and headed for the pharmacy.  Going up and down the aisles, he finally found what he was looking for.  He drove back to the hotel and tipped the valet generously.  He opened the package on the elevator ride up.     
Entering the hotel room, he found Riley still sitting on the bed, leaning to one side, and looking uncomfortable.  He pulled the item out of the box, and quickly inflated it.  “Sean, what is that?  It looks like an inner tube for a baby.”   
“It’s a seat cushion for you.”

He placed the small inflated ring on the chair.  Riley looked at it, then at him.  “You’re kidding, right?”

“Come on, angel.  Give it a try.  It’s either that, or we stay here for another night.”  He knew how badly she wanted to get home.

Riley painfully pushed herself off the bed.  Sean felt so badly about hurting her, he really hoped this worked.  He took her hands as she lowered herself very gingerly on the ring.  She shifted and bounced a bit and smiled at him.  “Hey!  It works!  It doesn’t hurt!”

Sean smiled at her.  “I looked online and they said sometimes pain sitting down and, uh….well, trouble pooping, is normal after your first anal encounter.”   
“I pooped just fine, thanks, because I know you were going to ask.”   
Sean turned pink, and admitted, “Well...yeah.  Anyhow, they suggested the inflatable ring seats that people use for hemorrhoids.”   
Riley said, “I don’t care what it’s for, I’m just glad it works.”   
Sean pulled his seat close to hers, and began to eat his now cold breakfast.  He turned to her and told her, “I’m really really am sorry for hurting you like that.  Totally inexcusable.”   
He looked really upset over it. 

Riley took his face in her hands.  “Sean, we did everything right.  We went slow, we used lots of lube.  It’s normal for this to happen.”

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow, and she said, “I did some research on my phone too, after you left.”

 

They finished up breakfast and checked out, not too far off their schedule.  Riley took the first shift driving. Sitting on her little donut, she had no problems.   When they stopped for gas, Sean pumped it and then Riley continued driving until lunch.  They found another truck stop, and Sean carried her little cushion in for her to sit on.  Riley was surprised nobody looked twice, but Sean explained that sometimes truckers use them just for extra comfort when they drive.

 

After lunch, they traded and Sean drove.  They finally got to the DoubleTree in Flagstaff, Arizona between 6 and 7 pm.  They checked in and headed up, deciding to order room service instead of having to go into the restaurant with Riley’s donut seat.

Riley was positively giddy at the hotel, Sean watched her fidget and bounce around the room with a little smile on his face.  “Girl, what has gotten into you?”   
“We’ll be HOME tomorrow!  Home for good, Sean!”

He had to admit, that really was kind of exciting.

 

They ate dinner and cuddled watching a movie.  Sean asked, “How’s your butt?  Any better since you were kind of not sitting on it today?”   
“Yes, much.  I may not need the donut tomorrow.  But I’m glad we drove.  I can’t wait to get home.”   
“Me neither, angel.  This driving is wearing me out.”  He looked at Riley and realized that was the wrong thing to say.  Her face was a mask of guilt.

 

Riley knew that they were driving because of her and her attachment to Herbie.  If it weren't for that, they would have flown and been home days ago.  This way was costing them time and money.  She knew the edits for Ghia were piling up, although Ghia knew what they were doing.  She knew that Norman and Lisa were worried about them driving such long hours and such a far distance - Senoia to Los Angeles was over 2,000 miles!  Her lip quivered, and Sean told her, “No, no, no!  Don’t, Riley, please!”

Too late.  Tears rolled down Riley’s cheeks.  “I’m sorry!  I know this is all because of me and Herbie!” she wailed.

“No, baby…”

“I know the hotels aren't cheap and neither is gas and food!  I’m sorry!”

 

They were laying on the bed up against the headboard.  Riley tried to scoot away, but Sean grabbed her.  “Oh no you don’t,” he told her as she tried to wiggle away.  “You stop this right now!”

“Let me go!”

 

He let her go and she got her laptop out of her bag and set it up on the desk and logged into the hotels wifi.   
“Riley, what do you think you’re doing?”

“I’m doing some edits.  I’m behind,” she told him, sniffling.

“Riley…”   
She put in her earbuds and proceeded to ignore him.  Sean walked over and yanked them out of her ears.  “OW!  That hurt!”

“Dammit, will you quit acting like a child?  Ri, I only said the driving was wearing me out.  I am not tired of you, and I’m not sorry we did this!”   
“Leave me alone.  I’m busy.”  She put the earbuds back in.  Sean threw his hands in the air and went into the bathroom, muttering, “Fine.  Sit out here and act like a spoiled brat, Ri.  I’m taking a shower.”

 

Riley’s earbuds were in, but she hadn’t been listening to anything, so she heard him.  She took them out and rested her face in her hands.  She WAS being a spoiled brat.  He’d explained himself.  He wasn’t tired of HER.  And actually, she was getting worn out from driving, too.  Closing her laptop and heaving a sigh, Riley stood up.  She needed to apologize.  Quietly, she opened the bathroom door.  Sean was standing under the shower, arms against the wall, head hanging down, eyes closed, and the water was cascading over his muscles on the back of his neck.  He must have felt her watching, because he turned his head and looked at her.  They just looked at each other silently for a moment, with the steam swirling around.  Then Riley said, barely loud enough for Sean to hear, “I’m sorry.”

Sean said, “Take your clothes off and come in here.”

Riley did as she was told, and as soon as she stepped in the shower, Sean wrapped his big arms around her.  She started to shake and cry, Sean comforting her.  “Shh….it’s okay, Riley.  Just hiccups, remember?  These are just growing pains.  I misspoke, and you misunderstood.  I don’t love you any less, and I’m very proud of you for apologizing, I know that’s not easy.  And I’m sorry too.  I need to think before I speak.”  He pulled back and looked at her.  “Okay, angel?”

She nodded and he held her under the warm spray in his arms for a long time.  “I love you Sean.  I’m sorry I was a spoiled brat.”   
He chuckled.  “I love you too, Riley.  And I’m sorry I called you a spoiled brat.  Sometimes we are both just too stubborn for our own good.  Let’s get out, okay?”

 

Sean shut off the water, and grabbed the towel he’d put aside, wrapping it around his hips.  Stepping out, her grabbed another one, draped it over Riley’s shoulders, helped her out, and started drying her off.  He towel dried her hair, and told her, “Let me dry off and put something on, and I’ll blow dry your hair for you.”  He hadn’t dried her hair in ages, and she’d loved it when he did.  He brought the little desk chair in and grabbed her toiletry bag, digging through it to find her comb and brush.  Immediately he set to work with the hotel hairdryer as Riley watched him in the mirror. He was shirtless, wearing only a pair of sleep pants, and Riley was still just wrapped in a towel.  She loved watching him, so focused on making her hair look nice, like the fate of the world depended on it.  Catching her eyes in the mirror, he gave her a smile.   
“Are we okay, Sean?”

Putting down her hairbrush and hanging up the hair dryer, he walked in front of her and squatted down.  “Angel, we are absolutely fine.  Like I said, just growing pains.  These are going to happen.  I have to remember what it’s like to live with a woman, and you’ll have to get used to me instead of Norman.  We will spend probably a week or two just working out the kinks.  We are absolutely fine and absolutely normal.  I promise you that, okay?”  He leaned forward and kissed her forehead.

Riley smiled.  She’d never lived with someone in a romantic sense...and it was a little scary.  

 

Sean stood and pulled her up with him.  “How about we get naked and have some cuddles under the covers?”

“I like that idea.”


	70. Chapter 70

They put on a movie they’d already seen so they wouldn’t miss anything if they fell asleep.  Sean set the alarm on his phone, took off his sleep pants and was about to climb into bed.  He stopped in his tracks to watch Riley.  She was still wrapped in a towel, and was switching off the lights.  She double checked the lock on the door, and put her laptop away.  Walking back over to the bed, she saw Sean watching her.  “What’s wrong?”

“Absolutely nothing, angel.  Everything is right.”

Riley looked at him as he crawled across the bed to her, gently unwrapping the towel from her body and dropping it to the floor.

Quietly he said, “Come here, you,” as he took her face in his hands and kissed her, softly at first, then with more urgency.  “Sweet Riley-girl,” he mumbled against her lips as his hands slid across her soft skin.

Pulling back, he looked at her with such intensity it took her breath away.  Not knowing what else to do, she said, “I’m so sorry, baby-”   
“Shhh.  No more of that.”

Sean pulled her down on the bed, climbing gently on top of her.  He dipped his head down and kissed her, sucking on her bottom lip as he pulled away.  

Riley felt something different in him.  She never ever doubted that he loved her, but in this moment, she was feeling a depth of emotion in him that she never had before.  Almost as if he was finally laying his soul bare to her.

Sean felt it, too.  He was finally letting down every wall he’d ever put up, and it was making him whole again.  SHE was making him whole again.  For the first time in a long time, he felt complete.  Riley was his.  Always would be.

 

“I love you so much, Ri.  I can’t even explain it….”   
“Show me.”

Sean looked at her and she repeated herself.  “Show me how much you love me.”

 

He knew that she was talking about something besides moving her in or driving cross country.  She wanted to feel it, heart and soul.  She didn’t doubt him, not for a moment, and he knew it.  But tonight would be a defining moment.  No more hiding parts of himself away.  It was time to lay it all out for her.

 

Sliding his length into her, they never took their eyes off of each other.  Up until this moment, Sean had always believed that “making love” and “fucking” were the same thing.  Just one phrase sounded prettier than the other.  He’d been wrong.  All his life he’d been fucking women.

 

But he made love to Riley.

 

Breathing her into his lungs, tasting her on his lips, and feeling her in his heart.  They took their time that night.  It was like it was their first time.  They explored one another’s bodies, marveling in all the details.  Tasting the sweat on each other’s skin, giggling when Sean got a cramp in his foot, and laughing when Riley accidentally whapped him in the face with her long hair.  It was relaxed and playful.  It was intense and beautiful.

 

It was everything.

 

When Riley’s back finally arched and she cried out his name, and when he dropped his face into her neck groaning out hers...the whole world was different.

 

As they fell asleep, Sean heard David’s voice in his head again: “Son, you best wife that little lady.  She’d be good for you.”   
Sean had no doubt about that.  But he knew he couldn’t rush Riley.  Just needed to move one step at a time.

 

He woke before his alarm went off the next morning, and he looked down at Riley in his arms.  She had fallen asleep in her usual spot with her head on his chest, his heart beating out her favorite lullaby.  They would make it home tonight.  Then their life together would really start.  Once she woke, he would call the guys who were going to fix Herbie.  Maybe they could come by and get him the next morning.  They had also said they could bring a loaner for her, no problem.

He was slightly altering his life for her, but she was completely changing her life for him, and he knew it.  He truly would have given up everything and lived in a trailer park in Senoia with her.  But she was the one who actually pulled up stakes and moved.  This truth was not lost on him.  He thought on all of this while she slept curled against him, her little breaths tickling his chest.

Riley gave up everything and took a chance on him.  On them.  He was going to do everything he could to make sure that she knew she’d made the right choice.  He knew that eventually they’d be separated for a short time at different cons or whatever, but they’d just have to go back to Skyping and Facetime.  At least it would only be for a few days instead of a few weeks.  If they were apart, he’d make sure he would call her every night.  

Being with her was so easy.  Unlike Lauren.  Lauren was the Queen of “I want” and “Give me”.  Riley didn’t even like to ask for little things, let alone demand big ones.  She had no interest in keeping up with the Joneses, she did her own damn thing.  He remembered spending a small fortune buying Lauren one of those disgusting “chocolate diamond” rings.  She had to have one because a friend of hers did, and hers had to be bigger.  Sean got it for her.  She only wore it when she saw that friend because it was so ugly.  She hated it, but demanded he get it for her.  God, he’d been so stupid.   
Then Riley comes along, and freaks out over the fact that her got her a white gold necklace...that cost less than 1/10th of that hideous ring.  She runs off at Disneyland and buys her own cotton candy so Sean can’t.  Her little face lights up like a kid on Christmas morning over a small bouquet of sunflowers and she got stunned speechless when he showed up with those rainbow kaleidoscope roses that one time.  She wasn’t interested in fancy jewelry or designer outfits.  She was just….Riley.  Why couldn’t he have met her first?     
If he was completely honest, because she was attractive, he probably would have fucked her but never looked at her again.  For a while there, he was a real asshole.  He really was only interested in Lauren because she’d been in Playboy.  Who doesn’t want a hot centerfold wife?  But damn, Lauren had so many issues and there were so many red flags with her….and he’d just charged ahead.  

Riley was practically the polar opposite. How did he get so damn lucky?  He was asking himself that question every day.  She began to stir and he told her, “Time to get up, Princess Riley.”   
“Five more minutes,” she mumbled sleepily against his chest.  Sean was well versed in this.  Riley could “five more minutes” herself into another hour.  Not that he would mind another hour with her  warm naked little body all curled up on him as adorable as hell.  But he told her, “Don’t you want to go home?”

That woke her up.  Her little eyes flew open and she sat up and looked at him with a smile.  “Today is home day!” she announced happily.

“It is!  Want to get some breakfast and head out?”

 

She nodded happily.

They looked over the room service menu and Sean called in the order as Riley used the bathroom and got dressed.  As they ate, Riley asked him a strange question.   
“If you ever do one of those red carpet premieres, would you want me to go with you?”

He almost choked on his coffee.  “Of course I would!  Why wouldn’t I?”

She just shrugged.  “I’m not the most fashionable person, I know.  I mean, I’d definitely get all dolled up for you.  But I don’t know fashion.  I’m a jeans and t-shirt girl.”   
Sean took her hand across the little table.  “Riley, I would LOVE to take you to my next red carpet premiere.  If you want to get all fancied up, I would help.  Hell, they usually have to actually remind me to wear dress pants, not jeans.  And the studio used to send people to the house to do hair for me and Lauren, and her make up, too.  We could go into Beverly Hills and get you a pretty dress and shoes, and you can play dress up with me.  We’ll be like a red carpet Barbie and Ken!”

Riley laughed.  “That might actually be kind of fun,” she mused.  “I mean a chance to really go all out...I’ve never done that.”   
“We’ll ride a limo, like fancy people!”   
“I’ve never been in a limo until the one you got to drive me to JFK airport!”   
Sean was stunned.  “Didn’t you and your friends go in together on one for prom?”   
“I didn’t go to prom.”   
“WHAT?  You’re kidding, right?”

He looked at her and she looked ashamed.  He knew he had to tread lightly.  “Why not, Ri?”

She took a deep breath.  “I didn’t have a date.  And it was really expensive.  The tickets were $75 for one, two for $125...it’s like they were penalizing us single losers.  Add to that the cost of a dress, and the simplest and cheapest ones were still about $300 or more, plus shoes, accessories like a purse and jewelry, getting at least your hair done if not hair AND makeup, transportation, dinner, boutonniere, and so on….it just wasn't affordable.  I didn’t have even a part time job because my parents wanted me to concentrate on school, which was good since my grades got me into UC Irvine.  But we just didn’t have that kind of money to spend.  And I didn’t really have very many friends, I was always with my nose in a book, so it wasn’t like some people who went ‘stag’ with buddies.  Maybe if I’d had a date or something, we could have cheaped it up by skipping dinner and driving ourselves, but I didn’t even go on my first date until college.”

Sean felt so bad for her.  She’d missed such a rite of passage and all the pomp and circumstance that went with it.  He knew her family had always struggled financially, but he didn’t know she’d missed out on something so important.  He’d never thought of the cost for a girl for those things.  Guys rented a tux, bought a corsage, and showed up.  If they wanted to splurge, they’d share a limo or maybe rent a hotel room for some prom night sex….but damn.  Why did guys always get off so cheap?  He would take her on the red carpet first chance he got and show her off.  He would get her the fanciest, prettiest dress ever made.  And a corsage.  And they’d go to the premiere after party that he usually skipped and dance all night.  And he would drive her up to Mulholland and kiss her under the stars.

 

They finished their breakfast, checked out, and Riley took the first shift, driving them HOME.


	71. Chapter 71

Riley took the first shift driving.  They stopped for gas, then Sean took the GPS and started looking for a place to eat that wasn’t a truck stop.     
“Hey princess, there’s a place just off the highway called ‘Mighty Mo’s Pizza & Subs’.  Pizza sound good?”   
“Sounds really good.  Truck stops are okay, but not if you want something that isn’t fried.  Although I do not regret the chicken fried steak we got when we left Georgia.”   
Sean chuckled, “Neither do I!”

The GPS gave them directions, and soon they were sitting in a booth eating delicious super cheesy pizza.  Sean gave her a smile and said, “Guess what?”   
“What?”   
“You know how we’re about to cross the Colorado River?”   
“Uh huh…”   
“When we do, we will officially be in California.  We’re almost home, babygirl.”

 

Riley let out a squeal that had the guys behind the counter looking their way and she jumped up and ran to his side of the table and hugged him.  “I can’t believe it!”

He told her there was likely an “Entering California” sign or something.  Riley went to the counter and asked the men working there, and they told her that there was indeed a “Welcome to California” sign on the other side of the bridge.  Sean promised that they’d definitely stop at the sign and take pictures.  He watched Riley bounce happily in her seat like Tigger.  She didn’t even know how adorable she was.     
That’s when it hit him.  That was the biggest difference between Riley and Lauren.  Lauren was beautiful and she knew it - after all, she had been a Playboy centerfold.  She was hot, she knew it, and she wanted everyone else to know it, too.  Riley was also beautiful - more so, in Sean’s opinion.  She was beautiful and cute and adorable and smart and strong and tough….and she had no idea.  That was why Sean fell so hard for her.  She was all these wonderful things wrapped in this tiny, sweet package.  She wouldn’t stray.  She didn’t put on airs.  She was humble.  She was just...Riley.  And that was all he would ever want.

“Sean, are you okay?” Riley asked, looking concerned.  He realized he’d been staring at her for god knows how long with a goofy smile on his face.

“Fine, babygirl.  Can’t wait to get you across state lines.”

 

Sean paid for the pizza, leaving a generous tip, and took over driving.  Riley giggled all the way across the bridge like a kid.  Sean just smiled and shook his head.  She really was perfect.

There was a turnout just past the bridge so people could take pictures.  The state line officially ended in the middle of the bridge, but they couldn’t stop there.  However, there was little bike path/walking path.  So they walked back to the state line, and Sean took a picture of Riley with one foot in Arizona and one in California, and one of them kissing with Riley in California and Sean in Arizona. He sent them both to Norman saying, “We made it across state lines!”  Then they walked to the “Welcome to California” sign and he took a selfie of them kissing in front of it.  He posted it to his Instagram and Twitter with the caption, “My first kiss back in California, and from the most beautiful girl in the world!”  They knew his account would explode and neither of them cared.  They got a text from Norman on Sean’s phone saying, “Welcome *almost* home!”

Sean couldn’t help it, he was getting as giddy as she was.  He’d talked to the guys from the body shop, and they were picking up Herbie tomorrow.  He would have to take the trailer and SUV back today.     
“Hey Ri, I gotta return this stuff today when we get home, the places are open until 8.  Would you be ok following in my car?  Otherwise I’ll have to cab it home, and that’s a bit of a distance.  I don’t mind doing it if you feel uncomfortable driving my car.”   
“Why would I feel uncomfortable?  Your car is an automatic.  Herbie is a manual, and sometimes he sticks.”  She added loudly, “And I still love you, Herbie!”

They made one more stop for gas on the way.

When Sean finally turned onto his street, Riley squealed.  When he pulled in front and parked, she jumped out and ran for the front door, digging her keys out of her purse.  Sean called out, “Riley!  No!”

She stopped dead in her tracks at the sound of panic in his voice.  He came running up to the door, pulling out his own keys.

“Sean, what’s wrong?”

As he unlocked the door, he said, “We’re doing this RIGHT.”  He picked her up in his arms, carried her over the threshold, kissed her softly, and set her down saying, “Welcome home, Riley.”

She looked around the room, smiled, and threw her arms around his waist, holding him tightly.  “I’m home,” she said.   
“Yes.”

Looking up at him, she asked, “Aren’t you supposed to do that whole carrying in the door thing when you get married?”   
“Don’t you remember that episode of ‘I Love Lucy’ when they moved to the country?  Ricky carried Lucy over the threshold.  They told little Ricky that when you moved into a new home, you carry someone you love over the threshold, so he went outside and carried his little dog over.”   
“You’ve never carried me over the threshold before.”   
“You were never staying before.  Now you are.  Now you’re home, babygirl.  You’re home.”

 

Riley was almost in tears.  She was home.  She didn’t have to leave in a few days.  This was it.  She was in the perfect home with the perfect man and the perfect life.  After all that she’d been through, she was getting her happy ending.

 

Sean wiped away a tear.  “Hey now.  None of that.”

“They’re happy tears.”   
“Still.  I don’t like to see you cry.  You’ve had to cry way too much.”

Sean went out to bring in their suitcases and Riley’s few boxes.  “You ok to drive, princess?”

 

After assuring Sean that she was indeed okay, he gave her his car keys and they left to drop off the trailer and SUV.  It was simple and fast, and neither place actually charged his card until he dropped off the vehicles, that way there was no overcharging.  Sean took over driving his car afterward, and made a detour on the way home, pulling into the Ace hardware that he’d gone to so long ago to get a house key made for Riley.  This time, he got her a copy of his car key.

“Sean, I have Herbie, and the auto shop guys are bringing me a loaner.”   
“That’s not the point.  You are part of my life.  I want you to have access to everything I have.”

Riley thought it over, then pulled her own key to Herbie off the ring.  “Sir, could you make a copy of this key as well?”

The old man was amused by this young couple exchanging car keys.  Sean was floored.  “Are you sure?  I know how much Herbie means to you.”   
“That’s why I’m giving you a key.  If you need to use Herbie for some reason, I know you’ll be careful with him.  You’ve driven him before.  He likes you.  He told me so.”

Sean gave her a sideways look.  “Please don’t tell me Herbie can talk.”   
Riley looked at him like he was an idiot.  “Of course not, he’s a CAR.  But he lets me know things….”

 

Since Sean didn’t have any groceries and they didn’t want to cook, they went to Mama Julietta’s Italian Trattoria on Wilshire….the same place they’d gone when Riley signed her contract and told Sean that she’d move in with him.  They ordered their food and while they were waiting, Sean asked Riley for her key ring.  He loved how she didn’t hesitate or question him, she just trusted him enough to hand them over.  He placed them next to each other on the table and took a pic for Instagram.  He wrote, “I gave her a house key a while back, but now she also has a copy of my car key….and she gave me a copy of hers.  I love this woman!”

 

Riley laughed.  “People are gonna hate me, and I don’t even care!”

They ate  their meal and as they were waiting for the check, Sean said, “I have garlic breath.”   
“So do I.  We’ll cancel each other out.”   
“Oh yeah?”   
“Yeah.  And we can ward off those Hollywood vampires.”

Once outside Sean insisted on another pic.  A selfie of them both with mouths open and tongues hanging out.  Captioned: “Another great meal at Mama Julietta’s Italian Trattoria on Wilshire!  We ate a ton of garlic bread and are ready to ward off any Hollywood vampires with our breath!”

A notification pinged.  It was Norman commenting, “Just wait til tomorrow when the garlic B.O. kicks in!  LOL!”

 

They climbed into the car.  And headed home.


	72. Chapter 72

This time, Sean let Riley open the door with her own key and walk in.  Sean took the suitcases upstairs with Riley behind him.  She looked around and said, “What happened to the other dresser?  Why is this one here?”  There had been another chest of drawers, and it  was replaced by a new one. 

Sean was quiet for a moment, then he said, “That old one was Lauren’s.  I got you a new one.  You deserve better than her old hand-me-downs.”  He softly added, “You’re already stuck with her hand-me-down husband.”   
“WHAT?”   
“Nothing.”   
“Holy fuck, Sean.  Is that what you think?  You’re not a hand-me-down!  Jesus Christ!  I can’t even believe you said that.”  Riley started to unpack her suitcase, throwing her dirty clothes in the hamper in the corner of the bedroom.

He had his back to her and just shrugged, slowly unpacking his own bag.

Riley took a deep breath.  She did not want to explode on him.  “Sean,” she said softly, but he didn’t turn around.  She walked over to him, but he kept his back to her.  Wrapping her arms around him from behind, she said, “If I’m Princess Riley, like you always tell me I am, then that means you’re Prince Sean.  After all, you’re my man.  You’re my prince, and she’s a peasant.  She doesn’t matter.  You aren’t her cast off, you’re my treasure.”

He turned around in her arms and looked down at her sweet face.  “Little girl, how do you always know just the right things to say?”   
“I learned from you.”

 

She took a few things out that needed to be hung up and walked into the closet.  He had cleared out one side for her and could hear her laughing.  He walked in behind her.  “What’s so funny?”   
“You have black hangers and I have white.  Trying to mark your territory?” she laughed as she started hanging up her things.   
Sean smiled.  “No, of course not.  I knew you’d need hangers, so I figured I’d buy some more like mine.  But when I went to the store, they didn’t have black ones anymore, all they had was white.  I didn’t want you to go without, so I got those.”

“Well thank you for thinking about a little thing like that,” she said giving him a quick kiss.

He blushed and said, “Just wanted to make you comfortable.  Didn’t want you to be needing stuff and stressed out your first day.”

 

Sean sat on the bed and watched her put her things away.  Putting them away for good.  He watched as she went into the bathroom and put her toiletries away in the drawers he had cleared for her.  She put her now empty suitcase up on the shelf in the closet, and looked at the two little boxes of stuff.  “I think those can wait until tomorrow,” she said.   
“You tired, princess?”

“Not at all,” she said, with a smile.  “As a matter of fact, I have all this pent up energy….I really should do something about it…”  Riley kicked off her shoes, pulled off her socks, and Sean was up and on her. 

 

He pulled her shirt over her head, saying, “I think I can help you with that,” as he leaned down and kissed her.  Their tongues slid across each other as he undid her bra with one hand, and walked her back against the wall.  Reaching between them, he undid her pants, then knelt down and pulled them off along with her panties.  He looked up at her, naked and perfect.  Gently, he grabbed one of her legs and threw it over his shoulder.  He hadn’t tasted her lately, and he was hungry for it.  

Sean nuzzled against her little landing strip, always perfectly trimmed, she was meticulous about her grooming, always had been.  He had told he didn’t care if she went bald, or was as bushy as a 70’s porno flick, or anything in between, he’d still love it.  Riley ran her hands through his hair as he breathed her in.  How did she always smell and taste so good?  Delicately, almost tentatively, the tip of his tongue snaked out and slid slowly across her plump labia.  He heard her gasp softly, and did it again.  On his third pass, he felt the hard little button of her clit peeking out.  Looking up at Riley, her head was back against the wall, eyes closed, breaths coming in soft little pants.

Sean wrapped his arms around her thighs, and used his fingers to gently spread her open.  Her tiny little clit stood out: wet, quivering and ready.  He jabbed it quickly with his tongue several times, making Riley’s fingers tighten in his hair and her legs shake.  He slid his tongue slowly across it, and Riley moaned.     
“You like that, dirty girl?”   
“Yeah.  More, please…”   
He laved his tongue over it again and again, relentlessly.  Then he latched his mouth onto her and started sucking on her clit.  Riley called out, “Oh my god,” and started to grind against him.  He sucked harder, hearing her gasp, then suddenly she yelled, “Gonna cum!”

His blue eyes shot up to her as he kept his suction on her clit.  He grabbed her hips to help hold her steady and watched as her back arched and bowed and she cried out over and over unintelligibly.

As her body calmed down, he gave her sweet little box a kiss, and slid up her body, still holding her up.  “Look at me, babygirl,” he said softly.  She slowly opened her eyes and looked at him.  Gently, he slid a finger inside her and slowly swirled it around, then pulled it out.  Bringing it up to her mouth, he said, “Taste.”  She obediently opened her mouth and sucked his finger clean.  Pulling his finger out, he immediately kissed her, sliding his hot tongue inside of her.  “Mmm, princess, you taste so good...your mouth, your skin, your pussy….”

 

Riley tugged at his shirt and Sean pulled back enough to pull it over his head.  Sweeping Riley up in his arms, he carried her over to the bed, and quickly pulled off the rest of his clothes.  His foot got caught in the leg of his pants, and Riley giggled as he hopped around, trying to free it.  “So much for me trying to be suave and romantic!” he quipped.  “I must look like a dumbass!”   
“Yeah, but you’re MY dumbass!”

 

Sean lay down next to her.  He tried to roll over on her but she said, “Nuh uh, MY turn.”  She crawled down his body, and smiled as he pushed a pillow behind his head to prop it up.  He loved watching her suck his cock.  Settling herself between his legs, she held his hard unit up out of the way, immediately licking on his balls, taking them in her mouth one at a time, rolling them on her tongue, and letting them slide out.

He breathed out, “Fuck, babygirl.”   
Smiling up at him, she said, “Does that feel good, daddy?”

“Yeah it does.  You’re so good to me.  Daddy’s little girl.”

 

Riley gave his cock one long, wet lick from base to tip, then slowly slid him into her mouth.  Sean watched as inch after inch of his cock sank into the warm wetness of her mouth.  His eyes got big when she was able to take him almost all the way.  “Shit, babygirl!  How the hell….?”

Riley pulled off and smiled at him.  “I’ve been practicing.”

Sean went pale.  “On who?”

“Not ‘who’, ‘what’.  On carrots.”

Sean would have started laughing, except she slid him back in again.  “Fuck, angel…never thought I’d be jealous of carrot.”

She slowly bobbed her head up and down his length.  Looking down at her, her saw her dark eyes tracking his every move.  He reached down, pushing her hair out of her eyes, gently brushing his fingertips across her forehead.  He was never letting her go.

Sean lost all coherent thought when she actually sucked on his cock slowly, all the way to the tip, then swirled her tongue around it, then lowered her head back down.  He was trying to hold back, wanting to make it last.  Riley pulled off long enough to say, “Please cum in my mouth, daddy.”   
She was barely able to get her mouth back on his cock before he blew his load, screaming her name, his body jerking with each shot.  She slid up his body and rested her cheek against his chest, listening to his heart thump wildly, as he stroked her hair.

Looking up at him, she smiled and said, “Welcome home!”

“One hell of a welcome, babygirl.  Shit.  The things you do to me.”

 

He caught his breath then got out of bed, grabbing her hand.  “Come on.”

“Sean, we’re naked!  Where are we going?”

He took her down the stairs, into the living room, and pushed her down on the couch.  “I said I was going to fuck you in every room of this house and on every stick of furniture.  This is our first stop.”

 

Riley was thoroughly fucked that night, into exhaustion.  FOUR MORE TIMES.  He fucked her on the couch, then on the recliner, on the floor, and then with Riley on her knees, bent over the coffee table.  Sean was debating simply moving on into the kitchen, but Riley was exhausted.  Her poor little pussy was bright red, and honestly, for the first time ever, Sean’s cock was having trouble getting up again after so many times in a row.  He looked over, and Riley was bent over the coffee table still on her knees, sound asleep.  His poor little sleepy baby.  As he picked her up in his arms, she mumbled, “I love you, but no more tonight...pussy’s sore…”   
“No more tonight, angel.  Just taking you up to bed.  For sleeping.”

 

Going into the bedroom, he laid her little naked body in the bed, admiring it for a moment, then pulling the blankets up over her.  He was surprised to feel his cock twitch as he looked at her, damn that woman was something else.  He headed back downstairs to double check that the door was locked and turned off the lights. Climbing back into bed as gently as possible so as not to disturb her, he turned off the bedside lamp, then felt Riley scoot over and snuggle into him, as always.

He tilted his head and kissed her little forehead, then drifted off to sleep.


	73. Chapter 73

Sean woke before Riley the next morning and decided to surprise her.  Before she had moved down for the two weeks that he was alone, he had watched countless youtube tutorials, and learned how to make bacon and eggs.  It wasn’t a big deal, it wasn’t fancy, but it was a start.  He slid out of bed carefully, and put on some sleep pants and a tank top - he’d learned the hard way to NOT fry bacon naked.  He double checked that the bacon and eggs he’d bought before going to get Riley were still good, and got to work.

 

Riley woke up and reached for Sean, but he wasn’t there.  Rolling over, she smelled bacon and eggs.  She smiled as she remembered how he’d had breakfast delivered at the penthouse.  She opened her dresser and fished out some sleep shorts and a tank top and headed down stairs, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.  When she got closer, she could smell coffee as well.  She was surprised to see Sean standing at the stove cooking.  He looked adorable, in plaid lounge pants, a white tank top, and barefoot, humming softly with a kitchen towel slung over his shoulder.

“Since when do you cook?”

Sean turned around and smiled at Riley, looking all rumpled and sleepy and cute.  “Or did you order out and are faking it?”

He laughed at that.  “Nope.  Besides my epic crock pot cuisine, that I have gotten VERY good at, I learned how to make bacon and eggs.  Actually…..I can only make eggs over easy.  Took me forever to get that down, too.  The yolks kept breaking when I flipped them.”   
“But how?”

“Youtube tutorials, mostly.  I wanted to surprise you by making you breakfast for once, and I wanted to do it on our first morning home.  I just….I wanted to do something nice.  And it doesn’t taste crappy either, I promise.  Would...would you like some bacon and eggs, over easy?”

It was so sweet, and he learned her favorite way to make eggs.  “I would love some.  By the way, I think this is probably one of the nicest things anyone has ever done for me.”

Sean blushed and got busy making her eggs, and letting her know that the bacon was keeping warm in the microwave.  She grabbed a plate and took some bacon, and Sean watched as she took a bite.  “Damn, Seanie, this is really good!”   
“Really?  You’re not just saying that?”   
“Really!  Almost as good as mine,” she smiled at him.

 

Within just a few minutes he was bringing her perfectly over easy eggs to the table, and a cup of coffee.  “I’m really touched that you learned to do this for me, babe,” she told him.

He cracked a few eggs into the pan for himself, telling her, “I thought at 50 I was too old to learn how to cook, you know, can’t teach an old dog new tricks.”

“That’s not true.”   
“Yeah, but…. ‘she’ used to tell me that all the time.”   
Riley knew that ‘she’ was Lauren.  “Well ‘she’ was a dumbass.  I’m sorry you put up with that.  It’s never too late to learn, Sean.  I can teach you some stuff now that I’m here permanent, too.  It’s really not that hard.”   
“You sure?  I went through a LOT of eggs and bacon before I learned.”

“Eggs over easy is tricky as hell, and bacon is dangerous.”   
“Yeah, I learned not to cook it naked.”

 

They enjoyed their “first” breakfast together.  Everything was a first with them now that Riley was there.  After breakfast, they showered together, but were very PG about it, both still being a little bit sore from the night before.  They were dressed and relaxing downstairs when the guys came for Herbie.

Walking outside, Riley told them, “A completely new engine, and four new tires.”  The guy looked at his clipboard and said, “That’s not what I have here.”  Riley looked at him.  “What do you have?”   
“Well, I do have the engine and tires.  But it also says bodywork, new paint, and new sound system.”   
“That can’t be right.”   
“That’s what he told us.”

Just then Sean walked up.  “Hey, what’s up?”

Riley shot him a dirty look.  “Could I have a word with you please?” she asked then turning to the mechanic, she said, “Excuse us.”   
She dragged Sean far enough away, then asked, “What the hell are you trying to do to my car?”

“Aw damn, did he give it away?”   
“New paint, new sound system, and bodywork?  What does that even mean?”   
“Well, Herbie’s paint was chipped, so I was gonna have him repainted.  Same color though.  And a new sound system.  I have no idea how you drove from Portland through to Georgia with an AM radio.  I was going to have them put in a new sound system that had satellite radio and also you could listen to and charge your iPhone.  It was kind of a house warming present.”   
“The bodywork, Sean.”   
“Yeah.  Just to get rid of all his little dents and dings. There aren’t many, you’ve taken good care of him, but then he’ll be good as new.”

“Sean, Herbie has scars.”

“Yes.”   
“And you want to fix them.”   
“Well yeah.”   
“I have scars, too.”

Realization dawned on him.  

“Sean, I like Herbie the way he is.  He’s been hurt, like me.  Do you want to fix me, too?”

“Oh god, baby!  No, no!  I didn’t even think of it that way!  I love you, you’re perfect!  Shit,” he said running his hand through his hair.  “I was trying to do something nice and I just really stepped in it.”  He sat down on one of the porch steps.  Riley sat down next to him.  Very quietly, she told him, “I understand what you were trying to do.  I really do.  And I appreciate it.  But...when everything happened to me, I looked at Herbie.  He was beat up, but still in good shape.  And so was I.  Believe me, neither Herbie nor myself will turn our noses up at the new paint job and the new sound system.  But leave his scars.  I need them there.  For now, at least.”

Sean looked at her.  “I am so sorry, babe.  I didn’t think.”  He got up and walked over to the guy and said, “Can you do everything except the bodywork?”   
“Well yeah.  I don’t see why not.  We’ll have to take a little extra care with the paint around the dents, but it’s definitely doable.”

“Okay.  Then cancel the bodywork, keep everything else.”

 

Riley got up and walked over to Herbie, sitting inside.  Sean walked up and heard her telling him, “Now you behave, these are nice men.  They’re going to give you that new engine and new tires I promised you, and Sean is getting you a new paint job and a new sound system!  Isn’t that exciting?” she asked, stroking the steering wheel lovingly.  Sean added, “And I’m really sorry about the bodywork.  I didn’t understand until Riley explained it to me.”  Riley turned and smiled at Sean.  “It’s ok, he understands.  And he’s excited.  And he said to thank you for bringing him all this way.  He thinks he’ll like L.A.”  She got out and shut the door, handing the mechanic the key.  “The transmission sticks a little on third gear.  Please be nice to Herbie.  He’s my friend.”

The mechanic smiled at her.  “I have a mustang.  I call her Mustang Sally.  I’ll be real gentle with him, make sure he’s treated with respect.  We don’t see a whole lot of these Beetles from the 70’s.  We’ll treat him like the classic he is.  So we’ve got a new engine, new tires, new sound system, and new paint job in pearl white, correct?”

“Yep.”

 

They left her a loaner, a generic 4 door Honda Accord in beige.  It would have to do.  The mechanic climbed in, and said, “Ok, Herbie.  Let’s take you and get you all fixed up.  You’ll be like a new car off the assembly line!”  Herbie started right up, with no problem. Riley turned to Sean.  “See how excited he is?”

 

For the first few days that Herbie was gone, Riley stayed close to the house working on edits.  She and Sean went and bought groceries, and Sean cooked a few things in the crockpot.  He had gotten better at it, trying out new recipes, and Riley told him how proud of him she was.  And that made Sean feel pretty proud, too.  He knew he could take care of her, she didn’t have to cook all the time.  After all, she was a busy girl with her book. 

Near the end of the week, she got caught up on edits and starting driving around with her GPS.  She was able to find things fairly easily, although she learned that driving in the freeways there was crazy.  She also didn’t like sitting in traffic at rush hour, it made her nervous.  Living in Senoia where the closest thing to a traffic jam was three cars on the road at the same time had definitely spoiled her.

One evening as they were watching TV, she got a text from Lisa.  She wanted to know if she’d be available for a Skype with her and Lauren.  She had picked out a few possibilities for bridesmaid dresses and shoes, and wanted their input.  “I would never put you in something you really didn’t like, but I think the ones I’ve picked are definitely wonderful,” she texted.

Thirty minutes later, while Sean was reading a book, she logged into Skype and Lauren and Lisa were waiting for her.  After exchanging hellos and gossip, they got down to business.  Lisa told them, “Neither of you have seen these, I wanted you to both see them at the same time.  Here’s the first dress and shoes.  I thought we could go with gold for a sort of Vegas feel…”   
She posted the first dress and shoes….and they were horrible.  Circa 1980’s gold lame dresses and hideous strap covered platform heels.  Riley kept a poker face, and she noticed Lauren did the same.  Lisa asked, “What do you think?”   
Riley said, “It’s very Las Vegas-y…”   
Lauren added, “Yes.  Very….gold.”

Lisa gave them both a smile and said, “I’m so glad you like it!  And then there’s this one.  It’s more of a little fairy tale wedding bridesmaid dress.  Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always wanted my bridesmaids to wear beautiful pink dresses…”   
Riley thought,  _ ‘I can totally rock the token pink taffeta dress.’ _

Unfortunately, pink taffeta was NOT what Lisa was about to show them.

“I saw these, and fell in love.  You two will look like beautiful cupcakes!”   
Riley saw a momentary flash of panic on Lauren’s face, and then Lisa continued, “And the shoes are so fun!  You’ll love them!”

The picture she posted of the dresses was an absolute nightmare.  Riley was trying hard to keep her poker face, and so was Lauren.  Lisa said, “And here’s the shoes.”

Oh HELL no.  They were platform oxfords, patent leather, and both the dress and shoes were Pepto-Bismol pink. It was like a bad prom nightmare.

Riley said, “Wow.”

Lauren said, “Um…”

Suddenly, Lisa burst into uncontrollable laughter.  “Your faces are priceless!  Do you REALLY think I’d make you wear any of that?  Oh my goodness, I Google image searched the most hideous dresses and shoes I could find!”  She was laughing so hard, she had tears running down her face.

Riley said, “You are an EVIL woman!”

Lauren was a little more colorful.  “You horrible bitch!”

 

All three were laughing.  Lisa said, “Here let me show you the real dress and shoes I picked, and please, if you don’t like them, say something!”

She posted a picture of a lovely sleeveless burgundy dress, just past the knees.  It was understated, yet beautiful.  The shoes were black mid-heel pumps with a wraparound ankle strap.     
Riley was in love.  “Oh Lisa, those are beautiful!”   
Lauren exclaimed, “I love them!  That is an outfit I’d be proud to wear.”

The girls oohed and ahhed for a few minutes, then Lisa whispered conspiratorially, “Do you ladies want to see my wedding dress?”   
They both exclaimed, “YES!”

 

Lisa posted another picture and Riley almost fell of of her chair, it was so stunning.  

It was an off-white, almost champagne colored silk gown, with an empire waist, but cut slim through the body, with a long, elegant train.

“Oh Lisa, that is so perfect for you!” Riley exclaimed.

Lauren got a bit teary, she and Lisa were very close, more like sisters than cousins.  “I can’t believe you’re getting married!  I’m so happy for you!”

 

After even more oohing and aahing, Lisa asked Riley if she’d be able to come in 3 months for a fitting, and then three months after that would be the wedding.  “Norman and I would love if you and Sean would come and spend a weekend with us.”  From somewhere else in the house, Norman shouted, “Can I come out now?”   
Lisa flashed a guilty look and said, “I banished him to the bedroom so he wouldn’t see the wedding dress and forgot about him.  Yes dear, you can come out now!”  Norman appeared onscreen, smiling and said, “Hey Riley-girl!”

“Hi boss!”   
“Not anymore, remember?”   
Riley chuckled.  “Old habits die hard.  Hi Normie!”

Norman smiled and asked, “Where’s your senior citizen boyfriend?”

Sean had been walking over and said, “I heard that, asshole!”

 

Between the four of them, they figured out the best time for Sean and Riley to come visit for the weekend, and after they got off the Skype, Sean made travel arrangements. He turned to her smiling and said, “This will be our first flight together!”

“Oh wow, it will!  Neither of us has to watch the other go down that damn hallway!”

 

They headed up to bed, agreeing that a night off from fucking each other all over the house was needed.


	74. Chapter 74

Riley woke up just after the sun came up.  She had rolled off of Sean’s chest sometime in the night, likely because he put off so much heat.  Turning to face him, she watched him sleep, like he had done so many times with her.  He was on his back, with one arm over his head and the other resting on his stomach.  Riley watched his chest rise and fall with each breath.  His lips were slightly parted, and she could see his eyes moving rapidly beneath his lids.  She saw his hands twitch slightly in his dream.  He frowned in his dream, and she said softly, “Seanie?”

He shot awake, sitting straight up and yelling, “NO!” and almost knocking Riley right out of the bed.  Sean looked around, saw Riley, and immediately pulled her to him.  He held her in his arms and rocked her gently, like he had in the barn when she’d almost died, while he made these sad sounds.  It took Riley a second to realize that those sad sounds were Sean crying, just bawling his eyes out.  That sound frightened her.

“Sean?  Baby?  What’s wrong?  You’re scaring me!”

It took him a few minutes, but he finally pulled himself together.  He pulled away and looked at her, he was a teary mess.  He told her, “I have nightmares about that night, too.  Nightmares that I got there too late, that he’d killed you and got away.  That I lost you.  But at least this time, when I woke up, you were right here, not on the other side of the country.”  He pulled her close and rocked her again.  It was a while before he spoke.  “That settles it, I’m calling the alarm company today.”

“Alarm?”   
“Yes.  I’m getting an alarm system installed.  Not taking any chances with you.”

“Seanie….”   
“No arguments, Ri.”   
“I wasn’t going to argue.  I was going to say thank you.  I’m not sure how I’d feel here all by myself, and sooner or later I will be.  You live in a nice neighborhood and it seems safe, but yeah.  I appreciate that.”   
  


 

They decided to head downstairs for breakfast and Riley made pancakes while Sean watched carefully, even stepping in to flip a few of them.  He was a good student, he’d be cooking in no time.  Poor guy hadn’t known that 99% of packages had directions on them.  His ex had made it seem like cooking was a big, complicated thing, even for the simplest things like spaghetti.  Sean asked Riley, “You’re saying spaghetti is easy?”   
“Babe, all you have to do is boil the water, put in the spaghetti, cook it for as long as the package tells you, which is usually 5 - 7 minutes, drain it, then dump on the sauce.  It takes me longer because I make homemade sauce, but seriously, a jar of Ragu works just fine.”  Sean sat there stunned.  “She made it seem so complicated,” he mumbled.

 

After breakfast, Sean told her, “I gotta head out for a bit.  Need to run a few shirts to the dry cleaner.”   
“You need your shirts dry cleaned?”   
“Well, no.  But these are shirts that buttons have fallen off of.  I’m taking them to be fixed.”   
“If that’s all they need, I can fix that in about 5 minutes.”   
“You can?”   
“Of course.”  She paused.  Obviously his ex wouldn’t or couldn’t do something so simple.  “Go get your shirts, and grab my sewing box from the shelf in the closet.  It’s that thing you said looked like a little picnic basket.”

 

Sean ran upstairs and came down with four shirts.  He had managed to hold on to the buttons that had fallen off.  Riley threaded two needles and handed him one.  “Today, you are going to learn how to sew on a button.”

It took a lot longer than five minutes, as she had to teach Sean.  But 30 minutes later, all the buttons were affixed, two of them by Sean himself.  He was so proud of himself for doing it, and he’d actually done a good job, he’d been very meticulous.  “Look at that!” he said, full of pride. “I fixed something that isn’t a car!”

Riley smiled at him. “You’re learning all kinds of things!”

 

A few hours later, as Sean watched a movie and Riley worked on edits, they heard the honk of a familiar horn.  Riley’s eyes met Sean’s and she happily cried out, “Herbie’s home!”

She was out the front door before Sean was even off the couch.  

Walking outside, he saw her standing there a good distance away, just looking at the car.  He asked, “What’s wrong, babe?”

“I don’t know.  He looks….different.”

She’d never been able to afford even a simple paint job for Herbie, and now he was looking shiny and new….but all his dents and dings were there.  With the new engine came a new, shiny exhaust pipe, instead of his old, rusty one, that had hung on somehow.  

Sean spoke to her gently.  “It’s still Herbie, honey. You know that.”   
“Yeah, I know.”

“Come on now.  Let’s go say hello.  Let him know he looks great.  He’s probably nervous, too.”

 

They walked closer.  They had cleaned Herbie inside and out.  The chrome on his door handles, bumper, and hubcaps gleamed, and they could see there wasn’t a speck of dust inside.  Riley had always kept him clean, she never left garbage in there, but she only vacuumed him sporadically.  She suddenly felt bad, as if she’d neglected him.  Sean picked up on it right away.  “Ri, you did good by him.  He understands.  I know he does.  And I bet he knows he’s taken better care of than most cars out there.”

She reached for the door handle but then drew her hand back.  She was afraid to get fingerprints on the shiny chrome.  “It’s ok, Ri.  Open him up and have a seat.”  Riley pulled open the door and looked inside.  His new sound system was capable of satellite radio and iPod docking, but they made it look very understated.  Herbie’s bud vase was still where it had been, fake daisy still inside.  She sat gently on the seat, and Sean went over to talk to the guys who had delivered him, as they were waiting patiently.

“Hey buddy,” Riley said softly.  “You look really good.  Almost didn’t recognize you.  I hope it’s ok that we didn’t get your scars fixed, but I think you understand.  You even got a new exhaust pipe!  Think that last one was held on with duct tape and a coat hanger.”

She saw Sean sign some paperwork, then come over to her.  “They need the keys for the loaner back.”  she handed them over and said, “I’ll be over in a minute to pay them.”

The next thing she knew, the guys were in the loaner and driving away.  Getting out of Herbie, she said, “Sean, why did they leave?  I didn’t pay yet.”  Sean gave her a sheepish smile.  “It’s paid for.  I took care of it.”   
“Dammit, Sean!  You were only supposed to pay for the paint job and sound system!  We talked about this!  What good is all the money they gave me if I don’t spend it?  Herbie is MY responsibility.  And I know all of that couldn’t have been cheap!”

Sean didn’t say anything, so Riley continued.  “I’m not poor, Sean! I-”   
“Well neither am I, dammit!”  he exploded.  “Jesus, Riley.  This is the way I was raised.  I’m a guy, ok?  I open doors, pull out chairs, and pay for things sometimes-”   
“But it’s not ‘sometimes’.  It’s all the time.  I had to be sneaky just to buy my own cotton candy at Disneyland, remember?”  Her tone had softened.  “Look, I get that you want to take care of me, I do, but you don’t need to.  Financially, I’m ok.  I don’t need you to pay for my car, or my cotton candy.”  He smiled when she said that.  “You always said you loved my independence, so let me be independent.  Let me pay once in awhile.”

Sean wrapped his arms around her.  “You’re right, babygirl.”   
“I’m not mad at you.  I still love you.  And thank you for paying for Herbie.  He says thank you, too.  Wanna go for a ride?”   
Sean smiled down at her.  “Hell yes, that sounds perfect.  Wanna see the beach?”


	75. Chapter 75

Sean gave her directions and she drove them to Santa Monica beach.  Parking the car, Sean smiled as she ran through the sand, then kicked off her shoes and waded in up to her knees.  Good thing she was wearing a dress.  

He took off his top siders that he never wore socks with, rolled up his pant legs, walked over to the wet sand, and just watched her.  She turned to him, a big smile on her face and said, “I’m home.”

California was where she was born and raised, but Norcal instead of Socal.  She’d spoken to him once about how when she felt sad, she would go to the water.  No matter how cold it was, once she put her toes into the ocean, it made everything ok.  His sweet little doggy paddling mermaid.  “You are HOME, babygirl.”

 

They wandered around for a while, and spotted a hot dog vendor.  Riley insisted on paying, and for once, Sean let her.  They sat down on a bench to eat and Sean spoke.   
“Can I ask you a question, babygirl?”   
“Sure.”   
“So you said Herbie can’t talk, because he’s a car.  So how do you know what he...he ‘says’?”

Riley was quiet for a moment.  “It’s kind of like….have you ever seen ‘Gremlins’?”

Sean gave her a strange look.  “Yeah…”   
“Well, when the old man took the Gizmo back, Gizmo said something in his little language, and the old man understood.  When Billy asked him how he understood, the old man said, ‘To understand, one has only to listen.’  It’s kind of like that.  I listen to Herbie.  It’s not hard.  I think if you listen to most cars you can hear them.  Ever had a car that you just KNEW when it needed oil or a tune-up, even before the check engine light went on?  You just knew?”  Sean nodded with a little smile, and she continued.  “It’s like that with Herbie.  Did you know I’m only his second owner?”   
“You’re kidding!”   
“Nope.  Bought him off some old hippie in San Francisco.  He was going to Brazil to ‘live off the grid, man’,” she said, imitating the old hippie’s voice.  “He had a ton of miles on him, but he only wanted $1000 for him.  The guy told me that a bunch of people had come wanting to buy him, some just wanted to strip him for parts, but he turned them all down.  He said he could tell that the car liked me, and that I’d treat it well.  He told me that this car was smarter than most people, and that if I paid attention, I’d figure it out.  I thought maybe he’d dropped a little too much acid in the 60’s, but he was right.  I promised him that I would take good care of him, and when I drove him home, I started calling him Herbie.  I’ve put so much money into him to keep him running, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.  Me and Herbie are a team.  He’s never let me down.”   
“But he broke down in Senoia.  Isn’t that letting you down?”   
“If I hadn’t broken down in Senoia, I never would have met Norman, or you.  What do you think about that?” she smiled.

“I think Herbie’s next can of oil is on me,” he laughed.

 

A month later, the edits were done.  Riley had worked so hard on them, and now all they needed was one final thing.  Ghia called her up.

“Riley, are you busy next Tuesday?”   
“No, why?”

“We want to book you for a photo session.”

“What?  Why?”   
“So we have a picture of the author for the back of the book.”   
Riley fretted, “Can’t you just use some of the pics of me and Sean?”   
“No, we need a good, recent picture of you.  Come on, Riley.  You’re a pretty girl, this will be simple, I promise.”   
“Can I bring Sean?  For moral support?”   
“Of course you can.  I’ll set it all up and email you the details, ok?”   
  


Sean was in his recliner reading a book when Riley walked in.  “Sean, what are you doing on Tuesday?”

Turned out that he had no plans, and was happy to go with her.  He was surprised she was so nervous.  “Baby, you are a photogenic hottie.  Don’t worry.”   
Easier said than done.

 

Tuesday rolled around, and they went to where the photoshoot was to take place.  They dressed Riley in a simple black t-shirt, a pair of jeans, and barefoot.  She was thankful Sean had painted her toenails two days before.  They did her makeup and hair very simply, letting her natural beauty shine through.  They gave her a stool to sit on in front of a neutral backdrop/floor cover and gave her a bouquet of sunflowers to hold.  She sat on the stool, and looked uncomfortable.  The female photographer tried to work with her, but she was so stiff….she just felt like an imposter or something.  Sean asked, “Can we take 5?  I know we just started, but…”  The photographer gave him an understanding smile and said, “Sure thing.  I need to change cameras anyway.”  Just as Sean was about to step on the floor covering, the art director said, “If you plan to walk on that, take off you shoes.”  Sean kicked off his top siders and walked barefoot over to Riley.

“Hey babygirl.”   
“I’m sorry, I’m trying.”

“I know, angel.  Maybe you’re trying too hard?”

“What do you mean?”   
“Just pretend you’re taking a picture with me, like we do.”

 

He pulled her into a hug, and they heard a shutter click.  They looked at the photographer, and she said, “Don’t mind me, just taking some test shots.”  The photographer caught Sean’s eye, and he caught on to what she was doing.  If they got some good shots, they could easily crop him out - she didn’t HAVE to be looking at the camera.

Riley stood on her tiptoes and kissed Sean, and started to relax.  He danced with her, spinning her around, while she held her sunflowers in one hand, laughing.  He pulled her close and dipped her, kissing her again.  Within minutes, Riley was laughing and animated, sitting on the stool, then hopping off, holding her sunflowers out to the camera, then holding them close to her chest, even sticking her tongue out and making silly faces.  The photographer was laughing at her antics, encouraging her, “I knew it, you’re a natural!”  After about 2 hours, they were done.  Riley would go to Ghia’s office the following week to look at the pictures and decide which ones she liked best.

During the drive home, she told Sean, “Thank you for coming.  I don’t know how I would have gotten through that.  I just felt like I shouldn’t be getting my picture taken.  All that fuss...not used to it.”   
“Well, you looked great.  I’m really glad they didn’t pile on a bunch of makeup or anything.  You’re a natural beauty.”

 

The next week at Ghia’s they both agreed on her best picture.  It was one of her laughing at something Sean said off camera, holding her sunflowers close.  She had a big, beautiful, natural looking smile on her face.  It was perfect.  Ghia smiled and said, “By the way, the photographer wanted me to give these to you.  They’re a couple of the test shots she took that turned out very precious.”   
One was of Riley and Sean’s bare feet, toe to toe, with Riley’s little feet up on her tiptoes.  The other was when Sean dipped her when they were dancing, just before he kissed her, looking into each other’s eyes.  She looked at that one, and Ghia said, “I have to tell you, that one makes my heart skip a beat.  The way you two are looking at each other, I feel like I should give you a moment alone.”

 

Riley stopped at a Michael’s craft store on the way and bought frames for the two pictures, putting them on the mantle above the fireplace.  Sean came home and noticed them immediately.  “Aw, that one is cute, even with my goblin feet!” he said about the first one.  He looked at the second one for a long time with a smile.  Finally saying softly, “I like that one a lot.”  Riley told him what Ghia said, and he said, “Yeah if I walked into a room with a couple looking at each other like that, I’d walk right back out and let them be alone.  We are definitely a cute couple, angel.”

 

Riley started going to the martial arts studio with Sean.  At first, she went just to observe, she wanted to watch a bit before she joined in.  Seeing how physical it was, she was a little frightened.  Seeing guys grappling on the mat….she didn’t know if she could do that.  Being pinned by someone was something that she wasn’t sure she’d ever be ready for.  Any kind of restraint, even in jest, by the opposite sex was not good for her.  Too many bad memories.  So to start her out, Sean just worked with her at home, and he was exceptionally gentle with her.  “If I do anything, and I mean anything that is making you uncomfortable in ANY way, you let me know right away, okay?  Don’t try to ‘tough it out’, you may end up having a full-blown panic attack, and we don’t want that.”

She did well and caught on quickly, but she preferred one-on-one with Sean rather than a class.  So three days a week, she and Sean would go to the studio an hour early and work together there before the first classes started.  They had mats and mirrors there, so they could both actually see what they were doing and the mats made it extra safe.  And every time Sean managed to pin Riley, which was less and less as time went on, he would help her up afterward, make sure she was okay mentally as well as physically, and give her a hug and kiss.  He also learned that she did better by praising what she did right and telling her she could “improve” upon something rather than telling her, “here’s what you did wrong”.

 

The weeks were passing quickly, getting closer to their trip to see Norman and Lisa so Riley could be fitted for her bridesmaid dress.  Six weeks before their trip, Ghia called and asked to be put on speaker so she could speak to both of them.   
“Okay Riley, are you sitting down?”   
Riley sat down on the couch next to Sean.  “Yeah, we both are.”   
“Okay.  The book goes public in one month.  We have sent advance copies to every place that could review it.  Girl, the buzz is good.  REAL good.”

Riley stood up, then sat back down.  “What are you telling me?”   
“There is a very, VERY good chance that your book will debut in the top ten of the New York Times bestseller list!”

Riley dropped the phone.  Sean quickly picked it up and made sure Ghia was still there, and she asked, “Is she okay?”   
Sean said, “I think she’s in shock.”

He watched as Riley stood up and sat down again, then got back up and disappeared into the kitchen.  “Ghia, we’re gonna have to call you back.  I think Ri needs to process this.”

 

Sean walked into the kitchen, and watched as Riley calmly unloaded the dishwasher.  Finally he said, “Ri, you okay baby?”

She paused, said, “Yes,” then went right back to unloading it.

“Baby,” he walked over to her and grabbed her hands.  “Baby, stop.  What’s going on?”  That’s when he noticed her hands were shaking.  “It’s okay, Ri.  It’s all okay.”  He led her back into the living room and sat her down on the couch with him, still holding her hands.  “This is GOOD, baby.”   
“I know.  I really do.  Just….”   
“Overwhelming?”   
“Yeah.”

 

He sat with her and calmed her down.  They called Ghia back, and Riley got so excited, she was in tears.  It seemed like all of her dreams were coming true.  It was scary, but in a good way.

Ghia let them know when the book would be released.  Sean immediately went online to talk about it on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and tagged Norman.  Within the hour, Norman had done the same, and then Lisa followed suit.  Within a day, almost everyone on the cast of Walking Dead who had a social media account was promoting her book for her.  It truly was impressive, incredible, and humbling.

Riley could only hope it would do well in sales.


	76. Chapter 76

Just a few days before the book was available to the public, a box arrived in the mail.  It was the first copies of Riley’s book.  When Sean had released Jane Two, he made a small video of him unboxing it, and insisted Riley do the same.   
Sean carried the box to the dining room.  Riley was out by the pool and hadn’t even heard the doorbell ring.  He went outside and she was laying in a lounge chair in the sun with her earbuds in.  Tapping her shoulder to get her attention, she pulled out the earbuds. He smiled at her and simply said, “It’s here.”   
“It’s here?” she replied excitedly.

“On the dining room table waiting for you, princess.”

Riley hurriedly pulled her shorts and t-shirt on over her bikini and went into the house with Sean.  He had a little box cutter sitting on top of the box for her.  He pulled out his phone and started filming.

Riley’s hands were visibly shaking as she cut open the tape and put the box cutter aside.  She opened the flaps and pulled out what felt like a thousand pieces of paper used to pack the box.  And then, there it was.

She looked up at Sean with a smile so big, she thought her face would split.  She reached into the box and pulled out two hardcover copies of “Sunflowers and Second Chances: An Incredible True Story of Survival, Redemption, and A Second Chance at Life and Love”.  She turned one backwards to the camera, showing the adorable author pic they had taken: Riley with a big smile and a bouquet of sunflowers.

She put the books down on the table, and as Sean filmed them a little closer, she spoke the first words that his online fans would hear from her:   
“All my dreams came true.”    
Sean raised the camera to her face, and she repeated, “All my dreams came true.”

 

The next day Ghia called.  “Girl….. ‘Sunflowers’ is going to debut at number 7 on the New York Times Bestseller List!  People have been pre-ordering it like crazy!”  Riley damn near passed out when she told her.  The floor seemed to shift under her feet and she listed to one side.  She dropped the phone and Sean grabbed her and helped her sit down on the couch.  He picked up the phone and reprimanded Ghia.  “Dammit, tell her to sit down next time!”

Sean took the call from Ghia since Riley was practically catatonic.  She’d hoped it would sell some copies, but she never expected THAT.

Sean ended the call and got into Riley’s line of vision.  “Hey baby,” he said with concern in his voice.  “You alright?”

Not knowing what else to do, Riley threw her arms around his neck.  Sean put his arms around her as well.  He could feel her shaking, this was a lot for her to deal with.  He said softly to her, “You aren’t alone.  I’m gonna be here with you through all of this and more.  Gonna be here as long as you want me.”   
“Forever?” she asked, her voice muffled in his neck.

“I like the sound of that.”

 

Riley was surprised that he said that, and yet, not surprised at all.  It seemed like Sean was in this for the long haul.  After all, he driven cross-country with her to move him into his house.  They spent her first week in the house fucking in every room of the house including the stairs - Sean hadn’t been kidding when he said he would fuck her in every room and on every stick of furniture.

“Come on,” Sean said, pulling her outside.  It was starting to get dark out.  He started taking off his clothes and told her, “Get naked, sexy girl.  We’re gonna sit in the hot tub for a bit and relax.”

 

They both took off their clothes and climbed into the hot water.  Riley gave a small moan then leaned backward, floating on her back.  Sean watched her with a smile, his baby was so stressed.  He knew she was excited and happy about the way things were going, but also very overwhelmed.  She just needed to relax for awhile.  He looked at her, her ears below the water and whispered softly, “I’m gonna marry you one day.”   Riley looked at him, and for one horrifying moment he thought she’d heard him.  But she just said, “Did you say something, baby?” and stood up.  He smiled and said, “Back in the water, little mermaid.  Just talking to myself.”  That answer satisfied her, and she resumed floating.  Sean watched her and tried to will his erection away, but it wasn’t easy.  Her breasts were bobbing on the surface of the water in the moonlight.  They’d been fucking like rabbits since she moved in: within the first week, he’d fulfilled his promise of fucking her everywhere and on everything.  They’d fucked until Riley’s labia was red and swollen and Sean could barely get it up any more.  And yet, they’d BOTH wanted more.  It’s like they were making up for all the time they’d lost.  But in the last few days, they’d both been so busy, they’d been falling into bed exhausted.   
He looked at her, eyes closed, floating weightlessly, and couldn’t help himself.  He grabbed her ankle and pulled her body closer, then ran his hand up along her leg, over her hip, and toward her breasts.  He looked up and although her eyes were closed, she had a smile on her face.  Turning her body, he used her ankles to open her legs and pull her toward his face.  He was only able to get a few licks in before Riley stood up, saying, “If we do it that way, I’m gonna drown,” and smiled.

Sean stood and looked at her without smiling.  Riley’s smile faltered, and she said, “Sean?”  He stalked toward her through the water without saying a word or losing the hard look on his face.  Riley stepped back until she hit the wall.  He stepped right up against her, putting his face close to hers.     
A hint of a smile played on his mouth as he asked her, “What did you call me, little girl?”   
She smiled and said, “I’m sorry, daddy.”

“Much better.  Now why did you stop me?”   
“I was afraid of going under the water daddy.”   
“Do you think I would let that happen?”   
“No, but when I cum, you said I’m like a bronco at the rodeo.”

Sean smiled.  He had indeed said that, and it was true.  And he fucking loved that she would lose herself like that.  Girls are so concerned about looking beautiful or sexy when they have an orgasm.  But there’s nothing more beautiful or sexy than when a woman allows herself to not give a damn and just feels it.

He patted the edge of the wall behind her.  “Hop up and open your legs, princess.”

“Yes daddy.”

 

Sean gave Riley a boost, and she sat on the wall.  Sean watched as the water slid off of her naked body as she got into a comfortable position. 

“Can I lay back?”   
“Whatever makes you happy, babygirl.”   
“Doing what you tell me makes me happy, daddy.”

He looked at her when she said that.  Her big eyes focused on him.  His little girl.  His beautiful woman.  His Riley.  “Lay back, baby.” 

Riley laid back, and looked up at the sky.  Sean pushed her legs open gently.  The first few licks tasted a bit like chlorine from the water, but soon it was all Riley.  He was licking and sucking at her sweet little pussy, his favorite taste in the whole world.  He got a devious idea.

Pulling his mouth away from her, he hopped up next to her, leaned down and kissed her.  She looked confused, but didn’t question him.  He had promised her once that he’d never leave her hanging, and he had no plans to do so now.

Laying next to her on his side, head propped up on his elbow, he watched her face as he slid his hand down her body.  Getting to the apex of her thighs, he stroked it gently with his hand, then gave it a few not too hard slaps.  Slowly, he slid one finger in, then a second, and started pumping them in and out, watching Riley’s face.  Her eyes slid shut and she got a small smile.  He hopped back into the water without breaking his rhythm.  He used the fingers of his other hand to gently manipulate her clit.

 

Sean hooked his fingers slightly, and hit her g spot.  She sat up saying, “Daddy, no!”

Sean froze in what he doing and said, “What did you just say?”

“Um….well…”   
He fixed a stern gaze on her.  “I’m waiting, babygirl.”

“I don’t want to squirt in the hot tub, daddy.  It would make a mess.”

“The hot tub has a filter.  We’ve spilled all kinds of shit in here, and I have more than once cum in here.  It’s fine and you know it.”   
Riley lowered her head.   
Sean asked her, “What’s REALLY going on in that pretty head of yours?”

“I lose control, daddy.”   
“You always do when you cum, baby.”

“But when I squirt, I can’t even see straight or think straight, and I’m afraid I’ll say something that might make you mad.  Like call you a name or use a bad word.”   
Now it was making sense.  He’d never done this as “daddy”.  Riley didn’t want to get punished for something she couldn’t prevent.   
“Babygirl, look at me,” he told her, and she raised her eyes to his.  He continued, “I promise you, no matter what you do or say, I won’t hold it against you.  I know that this is intense for you.  I also know that it feels really, really good.  I want you to trust me enough to lose control.  Do you trust me, princess?”

Without hesitation, she told him, “Yes!  Of course!”

“Then lay back and let me make you feel good.”

 

Riley laid back again.  Sean had never removed his fingers from her, and had been pumping them gently through their entire conversation.  He hooked his fingers again, finding her sweet spot.  His fingers pulsed against it as the index finger of his other hand flicked at her clit.  “Oh, daddy,” she breathed.

“Daddy loves his princess,” he assured her.  Speeding up his fingers, he asked her, “Do you love daddy?”   
Riley was starting to crumble, but managed to get out, “Love daddy...so much….so much….”

 

He watched her hands grip the edge of the hot tub tightly.  Speaking in a low voice, he told her, “Give it to daddy, babygirl.”  He was standing between her legs, he wanted to feel her squirt on his chest.

Her legs started to shake.  Her heels were up on the edge of the tub, and he saw her little toes curling. 

“Daddyyyyyyyy….”   
“Come on, baby. Cum like the filthy bitch you are!”

 

That did it.   Riley’s back arched, then slammed back down so hard, Sean worried that she’d hurt herself.  

“Fuck….daddy… FUCK!” she cried out.  She squirted hard three times, splashing Sean’s chest each time, just as he wanted.  He watched as she kept convulsing and swearing at him, loving it.  Finally it slowed to twitches, and she reached down and pushed his hands away.  “No more, daddy.”

Suddenly Riley sat up, slid into the water and commanded, “Sit,” motioning to the edge of the hot tub.  Sean was intrigued at his babygirl getting bossy, and hopped up on the edge, his erection bobbing against his stomach.

Riley looked up at him and said, “Now YOU squirt for ME,” and slid her mouth down his length.

He hissed out, “Oh fuck, princess.”

Sean ran his fingers through her wetness on his chest and licked it off.  So fucking delicious. “Close, babygirl….so close….”

Riley pulled her mouth off of his cock and said, “I wanna feel you squirt on my chest, too, daddy.”

 

Sean reached down and started jerking his cock.  He was going so fast, his hand was a blur.  Reaching down with his other hand, he played with his balls.  Riley reached up and started pulling on her nipples, and that pushed Sean over the edge.   
“Here it comes, princess, all for you,” he said and then shot his cum all over those tits that he loved.  He let out a caveman like grunt with each shot, and with each shot he watched land, it seemed like the next shot was stronger.  His balls finally empty, he watched as Riley dragged a finger through the mess and licked it clean.  He slid in the water with Riley, took some of his cum off of her chest, smeared it on her lips, then leaned down and kissed her, licking it off.  Pulling away, he said softly, “You make everything sweeter, princess.”   
“Thank you...Sean.”   
He nodded at her, understanding she was done playing.  He always let her dictate how long it went on.  There had even been a time or two where she hadn’t wanted it at all, and he was okay with that, too.  He loved Riley, no matter which version he got to play with. 

 

Looking at the mess on her chest, Sean said, “How about we get cleaned up and take a nap?”

“That’s sounds divine.”   
  
They went upstairs into the shower, had a quick wash and snuggled up together, and ended up sleeping all night.


	77. Chapter 77

A FEW MONTHS LATER….

 

Sean smiled at Riley as she walked up the aisle at the wedding.  She gave him a wink as she walked over to the left side, standing next to Lauren.  The wedding march started, and everybody stood as Lisa came down the aisle on her father’s arm.  She looked truly lovely, Norman had tears in his eyes as he watched her, but Sean only had eyes for Riley.

 

Norman and Lisa’s wedding was held in a private backyard of a friend in New York.  With the exception of the wedding party, nobody was allowed to know the location until that day.  They didn’t want any publicity, and they were afraid that if word got out, they’d have their wedding crashed by drones.     
Riley had been thrilled to see Mingus again, and Mingus made sure to let her know that if Sean was ever “mean” to her again, that he would marry her and love her forever.  He was such a sweet boy, and, like Chandler, he’d had a crush on her for about as long as he’d known her.  She thanked him and told him she would keep that in mind.  Then she teasingly let Sean know that she now had TWO younger men lined up for her.  “After all,” she told him, “I’m sure Norm would love to have me for a daughter in law.”   
“Ha ha, very funny, smart girl.  You’re lucky I like you.”

He was standing there as a groomsman to his best friend and looking across the altar at the woman he loved looking so damn beautiful.  Life was good.

 

Riley’s book was slowly climbing up the New York Times bestseller list.  She had gone onto a few daytime talk shows to promote it, always wearing clothes that left her scars visible.  And the people loved her.  Riley was just sweet and personable, and that came across on the TV.  Sean went to every taping with her, and sat in the front row, prouder than any man had a right to be.  People actually brought her book to be signed and would wait outside the studio doors for her.  She signed every single one, and spoke to every single person.  Some girls showed her scars they had from an assault as well, and told her that they weren’t ashamed anymore, and Riley would hug them and remind them that their scars weren’t who they were.  And after every appearance on TV, there would be a surge in her book sales.

 

In between writing for her school paper in college and writing the book, Riley had never stopped writing.  Ghia found out that she had written literally hundreds of essays, and demanded to see some of them, so Riley had been typing them up to send for a possible second book.  But the best part was seeing Riley so happy all the time.  She still puttered around the house straightening up and was still teaching Sean how to cook.  But she seemed to have finally relaxed.  She still got nervous before interviews on TV, but now she felt relaxed enough to just be herself.  Her first talk show, she was nervous and it showed, but the hosts asked good questions.  It really was adorable to watch them slowly draw her out.

 

And here he stood.  Looking at her in that lovely dress that Lisa had picked out, her hair and makeup done professionally, holding a small bouquet in her hand, with her pendant as always around her neck.  Lisa never even questioned her wearing it.  Sean knew he was checking her out.  He loved when she looked over at him, raised an eyebrow, and gave a little half-smile, as if to say, “See anything you like?”   
Boy did he ever.

 

Sean had used Norman’s New York wedding as an excuse to take Riley on that New York vacation he’d promised her long ago.  He booked a room for a week at the Ritz, and stayed with Norman and Mingus at the penthouse the night before the wedding, while Lisa stayed at the hotel with Riley.  Lisa didn’t want to have “bad luck” by having Norman see the bride before the ceremony.

Even Sean had to admit that Lisa looked beautiful in her dress...not as beautiful as Riley, but nobody compared to her, of course.

The priest, a young one who was a friend of Lisa’s family, was pronouncing Norman and Lisa as man and wife.  As they kissed, everyone erupted into cheers, and the priest announced, “I present to you for the first time, Norman and Lisa Reedus!”  More cheering, and then Norman and Lisa walked back down the aisle, followed by Lauren and Mingus, and finally Riley and Sean. 

The location of the wedding was not revealed until the day of, and the location of the reception was available after the wedding.  As everyone walked out, they were given a notecard with the address.  Norm and Lisa hated to do it that way, but with some of his crazy fans and the publicity they were trying to avoid….they really wanted this to be family and friends ONLY.  They were more than prepared to release photos afterward, but they wanted their privacy for this event, and all of the guests were respecting it.

Sean and Riley climbed into their limo and started to head out to where the reception was, and the driver notified them that traffic was slow.  Instead of 30 minutes, it would likely take 45 to get there.    
“Okay, thanks for letting us know,” Sean said, as he pushed the button that raised the little panel that closed off the driver’s area from the passengers, thus giving them privacy.  Riley turned and started kissing his neck and Sean murmured, “45 minutes..must be something we can do to kill the time…”

“Must be something…” Riley agreed, murmuring against his neck.

“Get over here, girl,” he told her, pulling her over him to straddle his lap.  Sliding his hands up her legs under her dress, he reached her ass.  He could feel her wearing little lace booty shorts, and grabbed her ass cheeks and squeezed.  “Fuck angel, get me so damn hot.  We need to schedule another spanking for you, girl.”   
She smiled at him, “Yes please.”

She dipped her head down and started kissing him, gently at first, until Sean grabbed her by the back of her neck and all but forced his tongue in her mouth.  He reached around and unzipped her dress, just pulling the top down, and pulled her tits out of the cups of her bra.  He wanted to just mess up her hair and makeup, but knew that would be a dick move.  He could do that when they got back to the Ritz tonight. 

As Sean started to lick and suck her nipples, Riley reached between them and undid Sean’s belt.  He pushed his pants down to his knees, and she reached up under her dress and pulled her lacy booty shorts to the side, and sank down on him. 

Both of them letting out soft moans.  Although they had a sheet of glass and a little panel separating them from the driver, it wasn’t completely soundproof.  

Sean put his hands on Riley’s hips.  “How do you want it, angel?”   
“I want it fast and hard.  Just want to fuck.”   
“You’re on top, sweetheart.  Anything you want.”

 

Riley raised and lowered herself a few times gently, then slammed herself down on Sean, hard.  His eyes rolled back in his head, it felt so good.  She continued slamming herself, then sank him in her as deeply as possible, and started grinding on him.  Sean clenched his teeth to hold back the moans that were threatening to escape.  He started sucking on her nipples again to try and muffle the sounds.

Meanwhile, the driver in the front was trying not to laugh.  He couldn’t hear them, true.  But the car was bouncing and rocking at every stop light.  Internally he shrugged to himself.  Weddings made people horny.  Get it while you’re young!

 

Riley and Sean were both getting close.  She leaned down and whispered in his ear hotly, “Gonna cum so hard.  Can’t wait to feel you unload inside me.”

“Look at me, Riley.”

She pulled back and he pulled her close so their foreheads were together, and wouldn’t let her look away.   
“I love you, Riley.  So fucking much.”   
“I love you too, Sean.  I...ohhh….”   
Sean clamped a hand over Riley’s mouth.  She managed to keep it down more or less.  But that damn squeezing her little pussy did was too much.  He started coming a millisecond after her, pressing his lips together to try and keep it quiet.  Letting out nothing more than a pained sounding, “Mmmm!  MMMMM!!!” then hissing out, “ah fuck, Ri….”

She collapsed against him, into his neck.  “I think I need a tissue or something to clean up a bit,” she said as she turned to reach for the box on the side counter.  But Sean turned, sitting her on the seat and pushing her legs open, one of his big hands under her ass to make sure nothing leaked onto her dress.  He grabbed a tissue from the box, and very slowly and lovingly, stroked it along her folds carefully.  When he got the worst of it cleaned up, he carefully spread her lips with one hand, and made sure to get as much as he could clean.  He tossed the tissues in the little garbage can.  “All clean, Princess Riley.”

She just looked down at him in silence.  Finally he said, “Please say something, because I’m not sure if I just did something good or something bad.”

Softly she said, “Something good.  Something really good.”  She leaned forward and kissed him softly.  He arranged her panties to cover her correctly, then carefully pulled up the cups of her bra to cover her nipples again.  He helped her put her arms back through the straps of her dress, and reached around her to zip it up.  Only when Riley was taken care of did he worry about tucking himself away and straightening his pants.  The driver spoke over the little intercom.  “We will be arriving in 10 minutes.”  Sean hit the button and said, “Okay, thank you.”  He turned to Riley who was freshening her lipstick and said, “He totally knows we were fucking back here.”   
Riley turned to him with a smile and said, “Ya think?” then opened up the sun/moon roof to help get rid of the porn set smell.

 

They walked into the reception looking no worse for the wear.  

It was a fun reception with a great DJ, great food, and a beautiful and delicious cake with a hilarious topper of a bride and groom giving each other a high five, not to mention tons of champagne. 

Halfway through, most of the girls were on the dance floor with their shoes kicked off, and Norman came over and sat next to Sean.  Sean put his arm around him saying, “Congratulations again, brother!”   
Norman had a smile as he watched Lisa on the dance floor.  “I hit the jackpot, dude.  She’s beautiful, smart, sweet, Mingus likes her….I feel like the luckiest guy in the world.”

“She’s definitely a winner.  Glad we could help out with having her stay at the hotel by the way.”

“Yeah, thanks for that!  She said the room was huge.”   
“I got a suite for me and Ri.  Since we’re gonna be here for a week, I wanted it to be comfortable.”

“I’ve been meaning to ask…..I don’t want to pry or anything, but….have you ever thought about marrying Riley?”   
Still watching her on the dance floor, Sean said, “Every single day.”   
Norman was shocked.  “Why don’t you ask her, then?”

Sean was quiet for a moment then said, “Did you know I sort of asked her when she was at the penthouse writing her book.”

“Yeah, she told me about that.  Freaked her out.”   
“She kept telling me ‘book first, everything else later’.  She told me that I wore her out sometimes, with begging her to move in.  She’s here with me now.  She lives with me.  But we’ve only been together, I mean REALLY together in the same place, for six months.  And I fucking love it.  I love having her in my house and in my life.  And I DO want to marry her….if I have my way, I will.  But Riley...she’s just more cautious than I am.  She worried so much about us moving in together.  I want to give her a bit more breathing room.  But believe me, I’m gonna wife her.  Gonna wife her so damn HARD.”   
They both laughed at that.


	78. Chapter 78

That night they were laying in bed in the Ritz, naked, freshly fucked, and still a bit tipsy.  They planned to sleep in the next morning and go the the Statue of Liberty in the afternoon.  They were talking about the wedding and how nice everything was.

Sean broached the subject.  “Did you ever imagine what your wedding would be like?”

Riley chuckled.  “Of course!  I’m a girl.  We get brought up on fairy tales and Barbie.  We all had these elaborate wedding fantasies.”

“Really?” he said propping himself up on his elbow.  “What was Riley’s Dream Wedding like?”

“You really want to know?  It was pretty damn ridiculous.”   
“Yeah.  Let’s hear it.”   
“Okay.  Well, it was going to be huge.  Like 500 people or something.  Basically everyone I ever met.  I was gonna have a whole gaggle of bridesmaids in pink taffeta dresses, ugh,” she made a face thinking about it.  “All the guys were going to wear tuxes with tails.  The church would have to have a LONG aisle, because I was gonna milk that walk for all it was worth.  My dress was gonna be so big and ostentatious, it was gonna make Scarlett O’Hara’s dresses look form-fitting!”  Sean chuckled when she said that, then she added, “And I was going to arrive at the church via horse drawn carriage.”

“Well damn!”   
“Yep!” she laughed.  “A string quartet was going to play the wedding march for me to walk down the aisle.  Then the reception was going to have a live band and open bar.  And a wedding cake big enough to feed a small country.  A bottle of champagne, wine, and sparkling cider on every table, and a gourmet catered meal.  And a honeymoon in Jamaica, where we would fly by private jet.”   
“Holy shit, woman!”

“Yeah.  Then one day my mom broke it to me that it’s tradition for the bride’s family to pay for the wedding.  We were broke, I would have been lucky if my folks could have afforded a justice of the peace.”   
“Aw.  I don’t believe in the bride’s family paying.”   
“Me neither.  But nowadays, it’s more of the bride and the groom pooling their money for everything, and the folks pitching in where needed if necessary and if they’re able.”   
“Yeah, me and Lauren’s wedding was a big overblown affair.  I hated every minute.”   
“Really?”   
“Well yeah.  Not because I was marrying her, at the time, I really thought I loved her.  But I wasn’t a part of it.  I wanted to be involved, and she told me that she would take care of everything.  It was all her show.  I understand she wanted it to look a certain way and have a certain mood, but honestly, I would have loved to go when she picked out the flowers and stuff.  She didn’t even let me go to the dinner and cake tastings!   She told me she knew what I liked and she would choose something we’d both enjoy.  I mean for the record, she did choose well.  But when I told her that I wanted to be involved, she told me my job was to ‘put on a tuxedo and show up with a ring’,” he said sadly.  “I should have known right then….”

Riley looked at him and said, “I’m sorry she excluded you like that.”   
Sean shook it off and asked, “Do you still want that ostentatious wedding?  I mean if it was affordable for you?”   
“Oh HELL no!”   
“What do you want now?”   
Riley got a little smile on her face.  “Something small, like what Norman and Lisa had - close friends and family.  I think...I think I’d like to get married on a beach instead of in a church.  Close to the water during sunset.  Maybe there could be a little archway to stand under, with flowers and tulle wrapped around it…”

She was lost in her own little world, and Sean had never seen anything so adorable.  She had this faraway look on her face like she could almost see it.

“Maybe just one or two bridesmaids and groomsmen.  And no tuxes with tails!  The guys could just wear maybe nice suits with matching ties.  But everyone in the wedding party would be barefoot, after all, we’d be in the sand.  The guys could roll up their pant legs.”   
“What about your dress, angel?”   
“Meh.  I don’t want to spend $5000 or more on a dress I’ll wear once.  I’d probably just buy a nice dress off the rack at Macy’s.”   
“And the honeymoon?”   
“Well, I’d still love to go somewhere tropical.  But it doesn’t have to be Jamaica.  Maybe just Hawaii.  And I don’t need a private jet.  But I’d definitely want to fly first class.”

He looked at her as she came back to reality.  It sounded like a perfect wedding to him.  She said, “It’s dumb,” and shrugged.

“No it’s not, baby.  It’s sounds perfect.  But what about the reception?”   
“Hmmm.  Maybe rent a small hall somewhere, like a VFW or local rec center someplace.  Get a DJ who plays a lot of 80’s songs.  A small cake.  Maybe just a little cake for the bride and groom and cupcakes for everyone.  And food, hmmm.  That would probably be the biggest expense.  But maybe get a small local place to do some catering.  Maybe even do it buffet style.  I want it all to be fun and relaxed, not stuffy.”   
  


Sean had to admit, it sounded absolutely perfect.  Especially when she added, “And the groom could be as involved as he wanted.  If he wanted to leave it all up to me, that’s fine.  If he wanted to be involved every step of the way, that’s fine, too.  I would never exclude him.  After all, you are building a life TOGETHER.  I mean if all he wants is a say in the groomsmen's suits, that’s ok.  If he wants to help with every detail, down to the color of toenail polish the girls wear ….well, it’s kind of weird, but ok!” Riley laughed and so did Sean.

“That sounds like a perfect wedding, Ri.”

 

Neither of them said anything for a few minutes.  Then Riley asked him, “What about you?  What’s your dream wedding?”

“In all honesty, I never thought much about it.  But now I want to totally steal your idea,” he said, and silently he thought,   _ ‘We can get married that way.’ _

 

They spent the rest of the week in New York being tourists: Statue of Liberty, a picnic and carriage ride around Central Park, walking around Times Square.  And then Sean surprised her with tickets to the opera the night before their last.  “Opening night for Phantom Of the Opera, babygirl!”

She jumped up and down squealing, she’d always wanted to see it.

“I don’t have a dress!”   
“We’re in New York, angel!  I’m sure there is a dress store someplace in this town!”

 

Riley decided to go to some of the fancy stores on Fifth Avenue.  Sean tried to give her his credit card, but she refused.  “I want to buy my own pretty dress with my own money.”   
“Do you want me to come with?”   
“No, I want to surprise you.”   
“Okay, baby.  I should probably go see about getting another suit.  The one I wore to the wedding is all rumpled.”   
“So’s my dress.  We kind threw them off and rolled around on them…”   
Sean gave her a big smile.  “Yeah we did!”

 

Riley got dressed nicely, in a long black pencil skirt, white long sleeved silk shirt, and her shoes from the wedding to go dress shopping.  She’d brought the skirt and shirt along on the New York trip in case she needed to “look nice”.  Good thing, these Fifth Avenue shops practically had a dress code.  The Ritz was only one block from the avenue,  and soon she was walking down the street, window shopping.  She peeked in the windows at Tiffany & Co.  She wasn’t one for big diamonds, but wow.  These were some BIG diamonds.  The prices listed ran from $900 for a modest diamond all the way up to $25,000!  That display window had cameras, alarms, an armed guard outside AND inside, and the window advertised “This glass is unbreakable”.  Riley wondered why they needed a guard outside if it was unbreakable, but whatever.  She stepped up to the window and looked at the big ring.  She asked the guard, “That ring is really $25,000?”   
“Yes ma’am.”   
“But it’s so…..”   
“Big?”   
“No…”   
“Brilliant?”   
“No.  Gaudy is the word I was looking for.”   
To her surprise the guard chuckled, saying, “Well, for $25,000 you can be as gaudy as you want I suppose.”  She smiled at him and went on her way.

 

She was walking by a high end dress shop and figured she’d try her luck inside.  Walking in, she was greeted by some pretty and well dressed saleswomen.     
“Hello, miss!  What can we help you find today?”   
“Well,” Riley began, “my boyfriend got us tickets for the opening night of Phantom of the Opera, so I need a nice dress for it.”   
“Of course.”

 

The saleslady pulled a few dresses for Riley in her size and waltzed her into a dressing room, asking, “Can I offer you anything?  Espresso?  Tea?  Champagne?”   
Riley was shocked.  So THIS was how the other half lived.  She politely declined.  In the dressing room she tried on the first dress.  It was a beautiful deep blue color with a low back crossed by the shoulder straps.  It was really stunning.  It was also $2000, but Riley wanted a fancy dress, just once in her life.  She walked out and the salesladies oohed and ahhed at her.  Riley saw as one saleslady’s smile faded - she had spotted the scar on Riley’s shoulder.  Riley turned to look on the mirror, and the women let out a collective gasp.  Riley turned back around, not understanding.  She thought maybe the back of the dress was tucked into her underwear or something. 

Still oblivious, Riley asked, “Is something wrong?”   
After an uncomfortable silence, one of the women spoke.  “You seem to have some very large scars on your back."

Of course.  She had one long cut that Kevin had made along her spine, she was lucky he hadn’t severed her spinal cord, as well as the crazy haphazard slashes.

Riley gave a confused smile.  “Yes, I know.  I was there when they happened.”   
“Yes, well,” the woman continued as the other women did an about face and left.  “I don’t think that is the dress for you.”  She went into the dressing room and removed the other dresses she had pulled for Riley to try on, then continued, “As a matter of fact, I don’t think we have anything for you.  I think it would be in your best interest if you took off that dress, put on your own clothes, and left.  Now.”   
Her tone implied that there was no argument or negotiation, but Riley felt glued to the spot.  The woman rolled her eyes and continued, “We cater to exclusive clientele.  We don’t allow just anyone to shop in here.  And we surely can’t have someone with horrible scars like yours wearing our dresses.  After all, you’re not anyone important.  We’d make allowances if you were an Olsen twin or something, but you are definitely NOT.  So please, take off our dress and get out.”  With that she turned and walked away.

 

Riley walked back into the dressing room, humiliated.  She’d gone through so much to get over her scars herself.  She ignored the pointing fingers, whispers, and stares.  All for nothing.  She was getting thrown out of a high end store, not because she was dressed inappropriately or because she was being disruptive, but because of something that she’d had no control over.  As she changed she could hear the salesladies laughing at her.  One said, “No fatties, no ugly people, and definitely no scarred up Frankenstein's!”  Riley put on her pencil skirt and silk blouse, and grabbed her purse.  She put the dress back on the hanger, and carried it out, polite until the end.  As she walked out with it, the saleslady snatched it out of her hand and looked it over, as if Riley would have done something to it, then said rudely, “I’m sure you can find your way OUT.”   
“Yes ma’am,” Riley said softly, and headed for the door.

 

A young woman in her 20’s was coming in as she searched in her purse for something and walked right into Riley.  The girl told her, “Oh damn, I’m really sorry!  Are you okay?”  Riley could practically hear the salesladies rolling their eyes, and just told her, “Yes, I’m fine.  No harm done,” and forced a small smile.  The girl looked at her and said, “Are...are you Riley?  Riley Maxwell, the author?”   
“Um, yes, I am…”  she stammered, just wanting to get the hell out of there.

“I read your book!  I loved it, it was one of the best things I’ve ever read!  Can I take a picture with you?  Please?”

Riley wasn’t in the mood, but she forced a smile and took a picture with her.  As she finally walked out the door, she heard the girl excitedly telling the salesladies, “That’s Riley Maxwell, the writer!  Her book is number 5 on the New York Times bestseller list!  She’s dating Sean Patrick Flanery, the actor!  Why is she leaving?”

She rushed away from the store.  About two doors down, she heard someone calling her name. Turning around, it was the saleslady who’d told her to leave.  Now the saleswoman was all smiles.  “I am SO sorry, we didn’t realize who you were until our friend Elizabeth pointed it out to us!  A bestselling author dating a famous actor….you are welcome in our store!  Why don’t you come back with me?  We can have you try on those other dresses or if your heart is really set on the blue one, there’s a lovely small purse that matches it-”

She stopped as Riley held up her hand, leaving saleslady’s fake smile frozen in place.  Riley told her very clearly, “Go fuck yourself, you uppity, frigid bitch,” then turned and continued walking away.


	79. Chapter 79

Riley walked for another block before she even slowed down.  She wanted to cry.  Maybe she should just go back to the hotel.  Maybe they could do a rush to get her dress from the wedding pressed and cleaned.  She realized she had stopped in front of another dress shop, the sign on the smaller building said “One of a Kind Designs by Sonia”.  There was a beautiful floor length dress in the window, with sparkles and beading on it.  It was absolutely lovely.  As Riley’s eyes traveled down the dress, they met another pair of eyes inside the window, startling her.  A young woman was inside, watching her and smiling, and she waved at Riley. Riley gave her a small smile and waved back, and the woman motioned for her to come in.  She was sure it would just lead to more heartbreak, but her feet took her into the shop anyway.

The girl smiled brightly when she walked in.  “Hi!  Welcome to my shop, I’m Sonia.  What’s your name?”   
The girl was so friendly, but so was that other saleswoman until...ugh.  “Riley,” she replied softly.

“I noticed you admiring this dress.  I just finished it a few days ago.  Would you like to try it on?”

 

At that point Riley burst into tears.  She couldn’t help it.  She wanted very much to try it on, but she couldn’t handle being treated like garbage twice in one day.  Sonia’s smile disappeared, replaced by a face full of concern.  “Oh hey, what’s wrong?  Please don’t cry!”

She led Riley over to a small loveseat and they sat down.  She couldn’t understand why this pretty lady was crying, but it must be pretty bad.  Sonia handed her a box of tissues, and told her, “I’m going to make us some tea, and you can tell me what’s wrong, okay?”   
“Oh, please don’t go to any trouble.”   
Sonia waved her comment away, remarking, “It’s no trouble whatsoever, I was going to make some for myself anyway.  Do you like Earl Grey?”   
Riley gave her a watery smile and nodded, and Sonia opened a curtain to the back of the store, exposing small kitchenette.  She made small talk as she prepared the tea, telling Riley she’d been selling dresses out of her small shop for years.  Most of her customers were repeat customers, as her designs were truly one of a kind.  “Prom season is insane!” she said laughing.  “My sisters usually come in and work with me then, and I still have to sometimes hire more seamstresses.  It’s perfect though because prom gets me through the whole year on rent.  That means most of what I sell becomes profit.  Well, not profit exactly,” she said as she placed a floral teapot on a tray, along with matching cream and sugar dishes, and two cups with saucers.  “Most of it goes right back into the shop: material, thread, scissors, upkeep or replacement on the sewing machines, that sort of thing.”  She set the tray down on the little coffee table, then ran back into the kitchen to grab a plate of cookies.  Sitting down next to Riley, she poured them both some tea and said, “Now you have some tea and tell me what happened.”

 

Riley poured out the whole story between sips of tea and bites of oatmeal raisin cookies.  When she was finished, Sonia looked both horrified and offended.  Finally she said, “‘Uppity, frigid bitch’ is right!  Where do they get off treating someone like that?  They throw you out because you have scars, then try to get you to come back when they find out you’re somebody special?  I am GLAD you didn’t go back!  If I was a violent person, I’d go over there and punch them in the face!  Every last one of them!”

Riley giggled at the thought of this sweet young girl walking back there and punching those women out, then Sonia giggled as well.  “Well maybe I wouldn’t...but I’d sure think about it!” Sonia told her.

 

Riley turned and looked at the dress in the window.  She explained to Sonia about how she got her scars and how she just didn’t think about them really...until today.  Sonia said, “Look, I have no problem with you wearing one of MY dresses.  You keep looking at that one.  Why don’t you try it on?”

Riley looked at it again.  “Are you sure?  You seem really nice, and I really can't handle if you got offended by my scars…”   
“I won’t,” Sonia promised her as she pulled the dress from the window and handed it to Riley.  She directed her to the dressing room, and Riley went to try it on with a heavy heart, sure that this girl, sweet as she was, would turn on a dime.

She changed and was looking at herself in the dressing room mirror.  It was beautiful, but again, her scars were plainly visible.

Walking out with her head down, Sonia mistook her sadness.  “Do you not like it?  I have some other dresses you can try….”   
Riley raised her head.  “No, I love it.”

Sonia looked at her and smiled.  “It looks perfect on you.”

Riley turned her back to the girl.  “See?”

“See what?  That you have a perfect butt?  So you have some scars.  Who cares?  I have a scar from appendicitis and another one on my knee from falling off my bike when I was nine.  I managed to land on some broken glass.  Big deal.  If someone doesn’t like your scars, well, fuck ‘em!”   
Riley smiled at that.  This girl seemed happy to have Riley wear her dress.  She stepped over to one of those 3-way mirrors and looked at herself.  It really was perfect.     
“How much is it?” Riley asked.

“$700.  I usually wouldn’t charge that much, but I did all the beading and sparkly bits by hand so they wouldn’t fall off, then lined it so the stitches wouldn’t rub against the skin.”   
  


This beautiful, one of a kind, hand made dress was only $700.  That dress in Snooty Bitch Dress Land was $2000, and probably sewn by a 4-year-old child in Singapore.  “I don’t suppose you have a purse to go with it?”

 

Riley walked back into the hotel with a garment bag and a big smile.  She had bought the dress from Sonia, along with a little purse and elbow length gloves.  She was set for the opera.

Sean was watching TV in the suite when she walked in.  “Hey babygirl, did you have a good time shopping in the fancy stores?  I see you found something.  Can I see it?”   
“I have got to tell you what happened first!”

She told him about what happened at the first store and how mean they were.  He got madder and madder, especially when she told him about how they came after her to try to get her to come in.  He was furious.  “You went back and bought a dress from them?  We’re taking that shit back!”   
“No, this isn’t from there!”

He looked confused, and she told him the rest of the story: ending up at One Of a Kind Designs by Sonia, and Sonia making her tea and selling her the dress.  “This dress is less than half the price, and twice the quality of the dresses at Cunty Bitches R Us!”  She opened the garment bag and Sean smiled.  “Wow baby, that really is pretty!  I bet it looks great on you!”

“I got a little purse that goes with it and gloves, too, and it was a MUCH nicer experience than at Twatlandia!”   
Sean was highly amused at the colorful names Riley was calling that first store.

 

He got up and walked over, putting his arms around her.  “I’m proud of you babygirl.”    
“For what?”   
“Holding your head high.  And telling that bitch to go fuck herself.”   
“I didn’t hold my head high, Sean.  I was ashamed.”   
“You held it high enough to walk away and not go back.”

 

The next afternoon, Riley visited the salon to get her hair and makeup done.  The ladies fussed over her long thick hair and beautiful skin.  Sean went to the men’s salon to get a professional shave and a trim.  Riley beat him back to the suite and locked herself in the dressing room to get ready, laying Sean’s suit on the bed.

 

It made Sean smile, she wanted to surprise him.  Well he had a little surprise for her, too.  Just a corsage, nothing phenomenal, just a some pretty flowers.  Something to make it a little bit nicer after the crap she’d been through at that dress shop.

Finally she came out of the dressing room.  He was standing with his back to her looking out the window and turned when he heard the door open.  He dropped the box with the corsage when he saw her.  He’d thought she was gorgeous at Lauren’s wedding in the green dress with her hair all done up, but he wasn’t prepared for this. 

She was stunning.

Absolutely stunning.

He was speechless.

 

He always thought Riley was beautiful, that was a given.  Whether she’d been slinging drinks in a bar, or cleaning Norman’s house, or naked in his bed, he was wild about her.  But this….wow.  Her hair was pulled back and curled, and her makeup, though heavier than what she would normally wear, was gorgeous.  She looked better and classier than his ex-wife had ever looked, better than any celebrity that had ever walked the red carpet.  And they were just going to the opera.

They stood looking at each other, then finally, Riley said, “Please say something.”  Sean managed to croak out, “I can’t.”   
Riley looked down at the carpet, assuming the worst, and unsure of what her next move should be.  Sean recovered, picked up the corsage and walked over to her, tilting her chin up so she would look at him.

“Never in my life have I ever been struck speechless until tonight.  Until you.  I’ve always thought you were gorgeous, but just….wow.  I don’t think it’s the hair, or the makeup, or the dress.  I think it’s that you’re my girl, and you’re going home with me.”   
Riley gave him a smile, and he held out the plastic box with the corsage.  “I got you a little something. It’s not much…”

 

Her sweet little face lit up when she saw it.  “Is that a corsage?  I’ve never had one!”  Sean wanted to go back in time and beat up all those fools in high school who passed her up.  He took it out of the box and slid it onto her wrist.  “You ready to go beautiful?”  She gave him a brilliant smile and nodded.

They headed outside and hailed a taxi to take them the short distance to the opera house.  Walking in, Sean handed the tickets over to the man at the box office.  The ticket man snapped his fingers and a usher appeared seemingly out of nowhere, saying, “Please follow me.”  Riley was confused, she didn’t know Sean had booked them a private box, complete with opera glasses and champagne.  The usher lead them up a small flight of stairs, then pulled a small curtain aside, telling Riley, “After you, miss.”  Riley stepped into the box and looked around.  They had a perfect view of the stage as well as the small orchestra pit.  The Phantom of the Opera has a big sound that is accomplished by a very small band of extremely talented musicians.  Riley looked at the plush velvet chairs, champagne, opera glasses and commemorative programs and turned saying, “There must be some mistake….” but saw the big grin on Sean’s face.  He said, “If we were going to an opera, I was going to make sure we did it right.”  The usher was standing by a chair, and motioned for Riley.  “Would you like a seat, miss?”

“Oh, yes...thank you,” she said as she sat down and Sean sat next to her.  The usher showed them a button they could push to summon him if they needed anything, and disappeared behind the curtain.  

Sean watched with a small smile as she looked around the box they were in.  He watched her remove one of her gloves to touch the velvet on the chair, then pick up the opera glasses and peek through them for a moment.  He poured them both a glass of champagne.  “Here, Riley.  Have a little champagne.”   
She turned to look at him, almost as if she’d forgotten he was there.  She sipped at her champagne, and said, “Sean, this is all too much.”   
“No, it isn’t.  Dammit, Ri.  Let me spoil you!  I told you I would when I brought you back to New York.  I’ve been very good about letting you pay for stuff sometimes.  But every now and then, you are going to have to just deal with me treating you the way you really deserve to be treated: like a lady.”

He took a sip of his champagne, but never took his eyes off of her.  Riley had been called a lot of things in her life, but never “a lady”, or at least not the way Sean had said it.  She had to admit, she liked the sound of it.  She smiled and told him, “Yeah.  Okay.  Like a lady.”

The house lights flashed, and Sean told her, “The show is about to start, babygirl!”  She was practically bouncing in her seat.

 

Sean didn’t know what he enjoyed more: the show itself, or seeing how much Riley loved it.  She’d had the soundtrack growing up, and he watched her lips move in sync with the songs.

During the first intermission, they used the restrooms, then went downstairs.  They had several souvenirs for sale, and Sean watched Riley carefully as she looked at them. Most of the souvenirs were musical ones, snowglobes and figurines that played the theme song “The Music of the Night”.  Riley picked up and looked at several of them, before smiling and putting them down.  Near the end of the table, she stopped dead in her tracks.  There was what appeared to be a Phantom jack in the box.  It wasn’t a real jack in the box, but was another music box, and it played the song “The Music of the Night”.  Riley picked it up carefully, being delicate with it.  There was a small price tag dangling off of it, and she checked it.  Sean watched her eyes get big and she quickly but carefully put it back down.  Just as Sean approached, the vendor was saying that it was only that expensive because it was #5 out of a first edition numbered 5000, and still in mint condition.  “It’s beautiful,” Riley said, as she moved back down the table toward the less expensive items.

“See something you like, angel?”   
“Was thinking of getting one of these little musical sculptures before we leave.  Aren’t they pretty?”   
“Definitely.  I think you should.”   
“Okay.  Before we leave.”   
“Which one is your favorite?”   
Sean did not miss Riley’s eyes, quickly darting back to the end of the table where the jack in the box was.  But she said, “I can’t quite decide between the snowglobe with the mask and the rose, or the figurine from the mirror scene.  I need to think on it.”

 

The lights flashed and they headed up to their box.  Sean was glad they had tissues, some of the scenes they saw in that second act were really tear-jerking, and Riley was sniffling in her seat.  They must have used waterproof makeup, though, as she still looked perfectly put together.  There was another intermission, and Riley opted to stay in the box.  Sean lied and told her he had a quick text to answer, and that he’d be back in time for the final act.  

He went down stairs to the vendor.  The jack in the box was still there.  Picking it up, he could see why Riley freaked. $550.  He didn’t care, he bought it.  The vendor carefully boxed it and put it in a gift bag for him.  The lights flashed, as the patrons headed back to their seats.  Sean slid into the box just as the lights dimmed, hiding the gift bag from Riley.

That last act was even weepier than the one before it.  Sean looked around the opera house at the other patrons, and noticed several ladies with tissues, and a few men as well.

The show ended, and everyone gave a standing ovation.  Sean said, “Why don’t we wait a few minutes before we try to get a cab?  Matter of fact, why don’t you tell me which souvenir you wanted, and I’ll go get it?”

Riley decided she wanted the mirror figurine.  She opened her purse to check her makeup, and that was all the distraction Sean needed to grab the gift bag.  He went down to the lobby and loitered for about 10 minutes, then back up to the box to fetch Riley….but she wasn’t there.  He had a moment of panic then looked over the edge of the box at the downstairs area.     
She must have gone down to listen to the musicians in the orchestra pit, no doubt to compliment them as well.  And there was his sweet Riley, dancing with a man who must have been 80 to the music the band was playing.  Sean smiled and shook his head, and went downstairs.  

They were dancing a slow waltz, and Sean heard the man tell her, “You’re doing well!  You catch on quickly!”  Riley thanked him, assuring him it was because he was such a good teacher.  A small crowd was watching them with smiles, and Sean joined them.

They turned and Riley saw Sean waiting patiently.  He held up his hand as if to say “finish your dance”.  The music ended and the small crowd applauded.  The old man asked, “Is that your fella?”   
“Sure is.”   
“Darn.  I was hoping to steal you away!”  He walked her over to Sean and said, “Hope you don’t mind that I borrowed your young lady.”   
“Not at all.”

 

Sean put his hand on her back and escorted her out.  She looked at the bag.  “You got my souvenir?”   
“Yep.  The last one.”   
Well, it wasn’t exactly a lie….


	80. Chapter 80

When they got back to the hotel, she opened up the gift bag.  Right away, she said, “This can’t be the right box.  The mirror figurine is tall…”  She finished opening it up and gasped.  Looking over at Sean, he smiled and said, “Well look at that.  They gave me the wrong figurine.”   
“But...how did you know?”   
“You didn’t know I was watching you.  I saw you pick it up and put it back down.  And I heard the vendor say it was numbered.  I wanted to make you happy.”

“It’s so expensive.”   
“But worth it.”

“We’ve spent so much on this trip…”   
“Yep.  Told you you’d have to support my deadbeat ass.  BUT….that movie I made awhile back?  The one I was filming when I visited you at the penthouse?”   
“Yeah?”   
“It’s about to be released.  The buzz is good so far.”   
“Oh Sean!  I’m so proud of you.”

They were changing for bed, and Sean followed Riley into the vanity area and helped her pull the pins out of her hair.  “I’ll be honest, babygirl.  We can’t do shit like this every month, but this was a special occasion.” He turned her to face him.  “I can promise you, though, that I will always take care of you.  I will be a good provider and the best I can be for whatever you need.  We may not have a swimming pool full of diamonds, but I will make sure you will never want for anything, if I can help it.  I mean that.”  Riley’s heart melted.  ‘A good provider’ he’d said....like a husband.

“I know.  And I can promise you that I will always try to be supportive and appreciative.  I’ll do my best to take care of you, too.”

He gave her a sweet kiss, and looked at her critically.  “You look absolutely pooped, baby.”   
“I am.”  He had her sit down in the little vanity chair.  He wound up her music box, went through her toiletry bag for a few things, and spent the next few minutes taking off her makeup for her while the music box played.  When he was done, he said softly, “There you are.  I knew you were under all of that makeup somewhere.”  He helped her take off her dress, gloves and heels, and then helped her into bed.  He climbed in on his side, and Riley curled up on him as always.  He didn’t know how he would ever sleep without her, and it was bound to happen with convention season kicking off soon.  He closed his eyes and was out like a light.

 

They spent their last day in New York holed up in the hotel, too exhausted to go out.  They laid around being lazy, ordering room service, watching movies, and napping.  And fucking.  They didn’t stay there just for sleeping.

They were laying in bed later that evening watching TV.  Sean had his arm around her, gently stroking her shoulder.

“Did you have fun this week, angel?”   
“Yes!  Best vacation ever.”   
“You know….maybe next year we could go somewhere tropical like you always wanted.”   
Riley got excited.  “Like Hawaii?”   
“Like Jamaica.  You have a passport now.”   
“Really?”   
“Sure.  We’d have to find some time that would fit into both of our schedules, but I don’t see why not.  Like I said, in a year.  Think you can wait a year?”   
Riley just sat there, smiling at him until he asked, “What?”   
“Jamaica sounds amazing.  But I like that you are making plans for a year from now and they involve me.”   
“Of course they do!  You’re the love of my life!  You live in my house!”   
Riley’s eyes got big.  “I’m the love of your life?”   
“Yes.”

She cuddled up to him.  “You’re mine, too, Seanie.”

 

They went to JFK Airport the next day and boarded their flight home.  After about 3 hours in the air, Riley told Sean, “I don’t feel so good.”   
“No?” he said pressing his hand to her forehead.  “You don’t seem feverish.  Are you airsick?”   
“No.  I think I shouldn’t have had those scrambled eggs at the airport cafe.”   
Sean rang for a flight attendant and told her, “She’s feeling sick from something she ate.  Do you have anything you can give her?”   
She told him, “We have some chewable Pepto-Bismol tablets.  I’ll go get some and be back.”   
Riley looked at Sean.  “Could you help me to the bathroom?  I think I need to be sick.”   
“Sure thing.”   
  


They undid their seatbelts, and Sean helped her up.  Just as they were nearing the bathroom, the flight attendant came back.  Sean told her softly that his girlfriend was needing the bathroom to be sick and they’d be out shortly.  They managed to both squeeze in and Sean shut the door, asking, “Do you want me to hold your hair?”   
Riley turned and smiled at him.  Before he could say another word, she put her lips on his.  She reached behind him and lowered the lid on the toilet, whispering, “Drop your pants and have a seat, you’re about to join the mile high club.”

Sean did as he was told.  That hot kiss and evil little smile of hers had been all he needed to get hard.  She pulled down her pants and panties, taking one leg out.  She made sure the door was locked, and with her back to Sean, lowered herself on him.  Looking at his reflection in the mirror, she put her finger to her lips, and he nodded in understanding.  They would have to keep quiet, they could get arrested for this.

She started riding him, biting her lip to keep from making any noise, Sean had his hands on her hips, and kissed the back of her neck.  The normal airplane noises muffled the sounds of their skin slapping.  Suddenly there was a knock, and the flight attendant said, “Are you alright?”  Riley made a retching sound, and Sean said, “Yeah, she should be ok in a few.”  The flight attendant made a yucky face and walked away.  She could check on them when they were sitting back down.  Sean reached his hand around to play with her clit, they really had to hurry.  He knew how she tightened up when she came, and that always made him cum, too.  Suddenly, she clamped down on him.  Sean met her eyes in the mirror, her lips pressed together to stay silent, and he let loose as well.   His jaw was clenched, head thrown back.  He slid his softening cock out of her quickly.  She stood up and cleaned herself up with some toilet paper.  She fixed her pants, flushed the toilet, and turned on the water.  Her face was flushed, but she had supposedly been bent over puking.  They came out and sat back down.  The attendant came over and asked, “Do you still need those Pepto tabs?”   
Riley gave her a small smile and said, “No, I think I’ll be ok.  But a little ginger ale would be good.”   
“Of course.  I’ll be right back.”   
She rested her head on Sean’s shoulder, and he kissed the top of her head, quietly whispering, “I’ve never done that.”   
Riley’s head snapped up.  Yeah she had said “welcome to the mile high club”, but she figured Sean had surely done that before.  “Really?”   
“Yeah.  I didn’t think it was possible.  I mean you can barely turn around with one person in there.  Have you done that?  Is that how you knew how we had to...position?”   
“Nah.  I googled it.”

The attendant came back with the ginger ale, telling her, “I hope you feel better.”   
“Oh, I feel better already.”   
Riley rested her head on Sean shoulder and slept the rest of the way to L.A. 

 

When they were getting off the plane, they waited for an older woman to pass.  She stopped and whispered with a smile, “I know what you were really doing in the restroom, but nobody else suspects.”   
Riley and Sean looked at each other, and Riley said, “I was being sick.”   
The woman looked at her and said, “I’m not fooled.  After all, I was young and in love once, too.  And the airplane restrooms were bigger back then.”  She winked at them conspiratorially and exited the plane.  Sean and Riley looked at each other and just started giggling.

 

They got home and Riley was going through the mail.  “Hey look, we got a postcard from Norman and Lisa!”

Sean came into the room .  It was a postcard of a beautiful beach that said “Many Greetings from Bali” on the front.  Turning it over, Riley read aloud:   
“Sean & Riley,   
Wish you were here, you’d love it!  The sand is white like sugar and the ocean is as clear as a swimming pool!  We are thinking of coming every year as an anniversary trip, we like it that much.  The resort is secluded and comfortable, and the food is amazing.  Thank you so much for being part of our big day and for letting Lisa stay at the Ritz with Riley.  We love you both so very much, and we will talk to you when we get home.   
Much love,   
Norman & Lisa”

 

Sean spoke.  “That was nice of them to send us a postcard.  Here, I’ll put it on the fridge.”  He took it and affixed with a magnet.  “Do you want to unpack, angel?”   
“I want to sleep.  I’m so jetlagged.  I never recovered in New York because we were always going somewhere.”   
“Yeah, I feel ya.  Let’s hit the hay.  The dirty clothes can wait until tomorrow.”

Sean double checked the alarm, and they slept until the morning.


	81. Chapter 81

A few weeks passed.  Sean was working on a TV movie, and Ghia had convinced Riley to compile enough essays for a second book.  She was even going to do a book signing for “Sunflowers” at a local bookstore soon.

Since Sean was gone during the day, sometimes not getting in until late at night, Riley spent most of the day writing.  In the afternoons, she’d straighten up a bit: dishes in the dishwasher, clothes in the laundry.  She’d make sure there was something for dinner, and would make a plate for Sean for whenever he got home.  He hated the weird hours on the movie, but the director was a weird guy.  Some nights he would come home when Riley was already asleep, crawling into bed next to her warm little body, and then leave before she woke up, placing a soft kiss goodbye to her forehead.  He mentally made a note to never work for this guy again.

One day, Riley decided to just go for a walk.  She hadn’t really seen much of the neighborhood except from the car.  She grabbed her pepper spray.  Even though Riley was becoming very adept at the BJJ way of kicking ass, Sean insisted she take it with her everywhere.  Checking her cell phone, it was dead.  The stupid heavy plug had fallen out of that outlet again.  She had forgotten all about that one.  She plugged it into another socket where it actually fit and held, and left it there to charge.  She decided to just go without the phone, she was only going a few blocks.  Grabbing her keys and locking the door behind her, she headed down the street.  

Riley stopped at the corner to talk to the billion year old guy who always seemed to be out watering his lawn.  They chatted for a bit, then she went around the corner where she found a young couple with triplets playing on a blanket on the front lawn.  She chatted with them for over an hour.  She walked over a mile in a circle, and was gone for over two hours.  Being out and chatting with people had made her feel good.  She needed to do this more often.

 

Sean arrived home during daylight hours.  They had wrapped that damn TV movie.  He pulled into the driveway next to Riley’s car.  Opening the front door, he called out, “Ri, I’m home.”  He turned to the alarm.  It usually started beeping as soon as you came in, to remind you to disarm and reset it, but it wasn’t beeping at all.  It hadn’t been set.  He knew he’d set it when he’d left early that morning.  “Ri, why isn’t the alarm set?” he called out, his panic rising.   He ran up to the bedroom and bathroom, but she was nowhere in sight.  He ran through the rest of the house, calling her, getting more and more frightened.  It wasn’t like her to just leave without letting him know.  Besides that, her keys were gone, but Herbie was here.  In the kitchen he saw that the dirty dishes were still in the sink...by now she’d usually have them in the dishwasher.   He called her cell and almost immediately heard a ringing in the kitchen.  Her phone was there.

 

Sean was in a panic.  He called the HBJJ studio, but nobody had seen her there.  He called Ghia to see if they had some kind of meeting, but Ghia hadn’t spoken to Riley in a few days.  He knew that the police wouldn’t help unless she’d been missing for 24 hours.  Unsure of what else to do, he called Lisa and Norman in a panic.

Norman put Sean on speaker as he explained the situation.  Lisa asked, “Is her purse still there?”  Sean ran upstairs and double checked.  It was sitting on top of her dresser as always, wallet inside with money and credit cards intact.  “Where can she be?” he cried.   
“Now Sean,” Lisa told him, “you need to calm down!  Where ever she is, she can’t be far.  She would never leave without Herbie, you know that.”   
“But what if someone took her?  The alarm wasn’t armed when I got home, but I know that I set it when I left this morning…”  Sean’s voice trailed off as he looked out into the backyard at the pool.  Had Riley fallen in the pool?  He ran out the backdoor.  No Riley.  He was both relieved that he hadn’t found her little body floating face down in the pool, but still panicked that he couldn’t find her.   
Lisa was saying, “Maybe she forgot to set it.”   
“What?”   
“The alarm Sean.  Maybe she forgot to set it.”   
“She never fucking forgot to in Senoia!”

Then Norman’s voice.  “There was a lot more at stake then.  You said she’s forgotten before.  Riley is around somewhere, probably not far.  You need to relax.”   
“How can I when my goddamn wife is missing?!”   
Silence on the other end, then Norman said softly, “Girlfriend.”   
“What?”   
“You said how could you relax when your wife is missing.  She’s still your girlfriend.”   
Sean ran his hand through his hair.  “I can't help it.  I’m so worried I can’t think straight.”   
“Look.  Leave her a note that you went to look for her, and if she comes home before you to call you.  Drive around, and if you see anyone walking around, ask if they’ve seen her.”

“Ok, that’s a good idea.  I’ll call you guys when I get back.”

 

Sean was scribbling a note when the front door opened.  “Hey Seanie, I saw your car!  What are you doing home so early?”   
He ran into the living room, and she was putting her keys on the hook, smiling at him.  As relieved as he was, he was also furious.  “WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?” he all but roared at her.

Her smile disappeared and she meekly stammered, “Wh-what?”

“I come home, you’re gone, the alarm isn’t set, your car is here but your keys are gone, your phone is here, you don’t even leave me a note….WHERE THE FUCK HAVE YOU BEEN?”

Riley just looked at him with those big eyes of hers, then said quietly, “Why are you yelling at me?”   
“Because I’m fucking FURIOUS!” he shouted.

He looked at Riley and he hated himself.

She was afraid.  He’d yelled at her.  And there she stood, frozen to the spot, looking anywhere but at him.  Looking for an escape.  She was going to bolt in about 5 seconds if he didn’t fix this right now.

Faced with all the stress of thinking someone had taken her plus the fact that he felt he might realistically lose her, he collapsed onto the couch and just started crying.  From fear and stress and relief.  He couldn’t believe he exploded at her like that.  Just months ago, he’d practically gone apeshit on Reedus for the same thing.  Here she was, the love of his life….and he was shouting at her.  He could see her out of the corner of his eye, just standing there.  Suddenly she walked into the kitchen and came back with two beers. She handed one to him, and went outside with the other one, sitting by the pool.     
Riley wanted nothing to do with Sean at the moment.  She walked in the door and the first thing he did was shout at her.  She hadn’t left a note because she had assumed he wouldn’t be home until much later, and she hadn’t planned to be gone as long as she was anyway.

 

“Riley?”  Sean came out saying her name softly.

“Go away.”   
“Honey, please.”   
“Go.  Away.”

“We said we’d always talk, remember?”   
“And I said it was ok to get mad first, remember?  Because right now, I am NOT thrilled with the fact that you shouted at me.  I’d like to be alone.  Please go away.”

Defeated, Sean walked back inside.

After 45 minutes, Riley came back in.  Unfortunately, it was just to get another beer and go back outside.

Sean’s phone rang.  It was Norman.  Damn, he was supposed to call him back.  He answered, but instead of saying hello, he just said morosely, “Riley’s home.”

“You don’t sound too happy about it.”   
“I….I shouted at her.”   
Suddenly, Lisa’s voice said, “You did WHAT?”

Damn it.  He didn’t realize Norm had him on speaker.

“I sort of yelled at her.  I didn’t mean to, but I did.  She won’t talk to me right now.”   
“You’ll be lucky if she ever talks to you again, Sean Flanery!” Lisa told him.

“Lis, come on, relax.  We don’t know what happened,” he heard Norman say.

Sean told them how she came home as he was leaving a note and he exploded at her.  How he knew he’d frightened her and he started to cry.  How he’d tried to talk to her and she’d told him to go away.

Norman sighed on his end of the phone.  “Sounds like you have some apologizing to do when she decides to talk to you, buddy.”   
“Maybe she should apologize to me, too!”   
“For what?  Let me ask you this: how long were you home before you called us?  I know you said you called the studio and Ghia before us, and considered calling the police.  But how long before you called us?”

Sean mumbled an answer and Norman said, “Speak up.”   
“I said 20 minutes, ok?  I was home for 20 minutes.”   
“We don’t know how long she was really gone or even where she was, but she was essentially ‘missing’ for 20 minutes.  You went into a full-fledged panic in 20 minutes.  Riley is capable of defending herself, you trained her.  She also had her pepper spray.  Dude, she likely went for a walk.  She does that.  She didn’t take her phone for whatever reason, she may have forgotten it, and she forgot to set the alarm.  Sean, I hate to tell you this, but you are the one being unreasonable.  She is an adult.  She can go wherever she wants whenever she wants.  You may call her Princess Riley, but that doesn’t mean you can lock her in a tower and expect her to stay there day after day.”   
“I don’t expect that.”   
“It sounds like you do.  20 minutes.  She was gone for 20 minutes.  I know you still want to protect her, but back off.  Let her breathe.”

“I don’t keep her locked up.”   
“No, not really.  But she’s working on her second book, which means she’s housebound most of the time. And it sounds like you expect her to be there when you get home like some 50’s housewife, no matter what time it is.  For fuck’s sake, it’s only 3 in the afternoon over there!  Panic if you get home at midnight and she’s not there, not when it’s the middle of the damn day!  You screwed up, Sean.”

Sean ran a hand through his hair.  Norman was right.   
“She won’t let me get close enough to apologize.”

“Give her some space.  She was pretty upset when I yelled at her drunk.  You did it sober.  Not your finest moment.”

 

They said their goodbye and Sean hung up.  He looked out the back window at Riley.  She was wearing shorts, and was sitting at the edge of the shallow end of the pool with her legs in the water.  Her back was to the house, but he could see in her slouched over posture just how sad she was.  He wanted to go outside and try to talk to her again, to comfort her, but Norman was right.  He needed to give her some time.

 

Riley was sitting with her legs in the pool, feeling rotten.  She wished she was back in Senoia.  She’d have Norman and Lisa with her.  No, no, she wasn’t going to think like that.  She was an adult, and she had to stand on her own two feet.  She got her legs out of the water and sat back on one of the chairs outside, giving them a few minutes to air dry.  She needed to talk to Sean.  But if he acted like that again, if he yelled at her like that again, she was out of there.


	82. Chapter 82

Riley turned and walked back into the house.  Sean looked up from putting a casserole dish in the oven.  “I was making that roasted chicken and red potatoes thing of mine that you like so much.  It will be ready in time for dinner...figured I’d make myself useful,” he joked, but Riley didn’t smile.  “Riley, I-” she held up her hand for him to stop.   
“I’m going to talk.  You don’t get to talk just yet.  You need to sit there, and let me say everything I need to say.  Period.  Do you understand?”

Sean simply nodded.

“Okay.  Sean, do you know any of your neighbors?  I mean, by name?  Did you go check with any of them when you thought I was missing?”   
Sean was ashamed.  “No and no.”   
“You grew up in Texas knowing the names of everyone on your block, and probably a few other blocks as well.  But you don’t know anything about anybody here.  Doesn’t that seem...I don’t know...wrong?”   
“Yeah.  It does.”   
“Well today, I just decided to go for a walk.  That’s all.  If you’d asked Rita and Roy, you’re closest neighbors, they would have told you they saw me, as I said hello to them as they were unloading their groceries. I was gone for two hours total.  It was longer than I anticipated, but I enjoyed it.  I didn’t take my phone because I plugged it into that one weird socket, and it didn’t charge, so I plugged it into another socket to charge while I was gone.  I forgot to set the alarm, which is bad, but you know damn well that I forget about as many times as I remember.  I didn’t leave you a note because I thought you wouldn’t be home for another several hours, if not until after I was asleep.  I took my pepper spray, and we BOTH know that I can fuck up a mugger.”

She paused to make sure he was listening and her was.  He nodded for her to go on.

“So I just went walking around.  You know Mr. Foster?  That old guy who’s always watering his lawn?”   
Sean nodded.   
“He fought in both World War 2 AND the Korean War!  He’s a war hero!  He’s got 2 Purple Hearts, one from each war, and a Bronze Star for bravery from the Korean War!  He went out on the battlefield under heavy artillery to rescue some men who’d been injured, and then went back to drag in the bodies of the deceased so they could be sent home to their families for burial.”   
Sean was embarrassed that he didn’t know that.  He had the utmost respect for people in the armed forces, men and women, active and retired.  His own neighbor was a goddamn war hero, and he didn’t even know.

“His wife died several years ago from a heart attack, but he’s still pretty active.  Cooks dinner, putters around the house, and of course, waters the lawn.  The flowers that are growing are the ones his wife planted all those years ago.  They had 2 children, four grandchildren, and now he has one great grandchild.  He says next year he will probably sell the house, too big for him all alone.  It’s a three bedroom.  One of his granddaughters and her husband really want him to move in with them.  They live in Miami, so the climate is perfect.”   
Sean was stunned that she’d learned so much.   
“And then, if you go around the corner...you know that blue house with the green trim?”

He just nodded.   
“Well there’s a young couple who live there, Rebecca and Dave.  They just had kids 6 months ago - triplets!  A girl and two boys. And get this, the kids names are John, Paula, and George.  Like the Beatles.  The triplets were a surprise, multiples don’t run in either side of the family.  They said they would need a bigger place, there’s is only two bedrooms, so I told them to keep an eye on Mr. Foster’s house, that he might sell it in a year.  Three bedrooms are better than two.”

Sean couldn’t believe this.  Riley seemed to just be a natural charmer.

“And then I just walked for a while, petted a few dogs, chatted with a letter carrier.  I came home, all happy and relaxed.  I saw your car in the driveway and was happy you were home, I couldn’t wait to tell you about all the people I’d talked to and everything.  And the first thing you do is shout at me.  Can you see why I didn’t want to talk to you?”

 

Sean felt so ashamed.  How many years had he lived in that damn house, and he’d never once talked to his neighbors.  Riley was here for a few months, and she knew more about them than he did.  All because she took a walk and talked to people.

Riley spoke again.  “I’m done.  You can talk if you want to.”

Taking a breath, Sean said, “I came home and couldn’t find you.  I called and that’s when I found out you didn’t have your cell.  Herbie was here and so was your purse, but your keys were gone.  I called the studio and Ghia to see if they’d seen you.  They hadn’t, and I wanted to call the police, but I knew they wouldn’t do anything unless you’d been gone for 24 hours.  I called Norman and Lisa because I didn’t know what else to do, and they both tried to convince me that you were fine.  When I wouldn’t listen, Norman told me to go look for you and leave a note for you to call me when you got home.  That’s what I was doing when you came home.”   
They sat across from each other, neither one speaking.  Finally, Sean spoke again.  “I know I was out of line.  But all I could think of was….was….you know.  What happened to you.  I thought maybe you’d answered the door and someone snatched you.  All I could think of was that I was losing you again.  I couldn’t handle the thought of that, Ri.  I couldn’t handle losing you.  I mean REALLY losing you.  I just couldn’t.  And my brain automatically went there.  Honestly angel, it probably always will.  If you wanted to leave me, it would break my heart.  But if you were TAKEN from me, from all of us….I don’t think I could survive.  Without you, I don’t know if my life would be worth living.      
I am so so so sorry I shouted at you, baby.  I really am.  And you’re right, I don’t know my neighbors, I never bothered to.  I need to change that.   
I love you, Riley.  I will never yell at you again.  I still can’t believe I did.”  The shame was evident in his voice.

Riley asked him, “So why are you home so early anyway?”   
Sean gave her a small smile.  “We finished the TV movie.  I’m going to talk to my agent about never working for that guy again.  He was a coke fiend - that’s why we were working such weird, long hours.  I don’t want any part of that.”

 

The kitchen timer went off, and Sean said, “Saved by the bell.”  He pulled the casserole out of the oven and on the table on a hot paid Riley had grabbed.  Riley grabbed plates, while Sean grabbed glasses and silverware.  They ate in silence, both of them thinking about what the other had said.

After they ate, Sean loaded the dishwasher, including the dishes from earlier in the day that Riley usually loaded.  When he was done, he walked into the living room.  Riley had a book in her lap, but was staring into space.  Sean sat down across from her in his recliner.  He barely sat in it anymore, preferring to be on the couch, close to Riley.  Clearing his throat, he asked, “So...how do you want to do this?”

Riley was confused.  “Do what?”   
“I mean...do you want me to sleep in the guest bedroom?” he asked sadly.

“No.  This was a fight.  And it was a bad one.  But I don’t love you any less.  You said you were sorry for yelling at me.  I believe you and accept your apology.  I’m sorry for worrying you.  I just didn’t think.  I hope you believe me and accept my apology, too.”

“I do, babygirl.  So we’re ok?”   
“We will be.  I think we both need to just calm down, but sleeping apart isn’t going to help that.”

“Good.  I don’t want to sleep without you if I don’t have to.”   
“Sean?”   
“Yeah?”   
“Don’t ever do that to me again.  I mean it.”   
“I won’t angel.  That’s a promise.”

 

That night when they went to bed, Riley curled up against him like always.  That was the most comforting feeling in the world for him.

 

The next morning found Riley back at her computer.  All the essays she had written were written in longhand, so she had to type out each one.  Sean spent most of the day on the phone with his agent going over possible future projects.  Work, work, work.

Sean loved to sneak looks at Riley when she was working.  Her little brow furrowed, chewing on her lip, and every now and then letting out a “crap” or “dammit” or even “shit” under her breath when she couldn’t decipher her own penmanship on something she’d written years ago.

 

Within a day, things were back to normal between them.  They both calmed down and talked about it a little more.  They understood why the other had done the things they’d done.   He even went out with her to meet his closest neighbors, Rita and Roy.  They were about a decade or so older than Riley and Sean.  Roy walked with a fancy carved cane.  When Riley told him how pretty it was, he told them that he needed it as he’d been a stuntman in Hollywood for years.  He’d had more broken bones than he cared to remember, but had done several stunts and stunt driving for a ton of 1970’s movies: The French Connection, Vanishing Point, even several episodes of The Streets of San Francisco.  Riley perked up when he said that.  “I used to watch that with my dad when I was growing up!  That and The Rockford Files!”  Laughing, he said, “I worked on that show a few times as well!”

Rita had been a beauty queen, winning several Miss California titles in a row.  “I got to be on a couple of TV shows, always just as a randomly billed ‘Pretty Girl #2’ or ‘Pretty Girl on Beach’ , that sort of thing.  But that’s how we met.  I thought he was the most handsome man I’d ever met.  It was love at first sight for me,” Rita said, blushing.   
“Me, too,” Roy added, smiling.  “I saw her and thought ‘Wow, she’s gorgeous, I gotta impress her.’  Well I tried to walk by her being suave and cool, tripped over my own two feet, and chipped a tooth!”

Riley started to laugh.  “Oh no!”   
Roy laughed too.  “Oh yes!  But this pretty lady helped me up, dusted me off, and offered to drive me to her own dentist to get it looked at.  We’ve been together ever since.  How about you two?”   
Riley smiled and said, “I was working at a bar in Senoia, Georgia, and a mutual friend introduced us.”   
Sean chimed in, “I liked her because she gave me a hard time from day one.  Didn’t let me get away with anything.  Couldn’t impress her with money or fancy clothes.  I guess it was a year before she even really liked me.”

 

It was getting dark so they bid the couple good night, but before they did, they admitted that they knew who Sean was, having seen some of his movies.  Rita asked Riley, “Are you an actor too?”   
“Oh no.  I’m a writer.”

Rita looked at her critically and said,  “You’re not...you ARE!  You’re Riley Maxwell!  I knew I knew you from somewhere!  We’re reading your book!”

“What?”  Riley was shocked.  “You’re kidding!”   
“Really!”  Rita assured her.  “Roy’s eyes aren’t too good for reading, so I’ve been reading it aloud at night.”  Turning to her husband, she told him, “Roy, go grab our copy, it’s on my bedside table, and a pen!”  Turning back to Riley, she asked, “Would you sign our copy?  We were going to go to your book signing next week, but it’s so hard for Roy to stand for long periods….would you sign our book for us?  It would mean so much.”   
Riley was floored.  “Yes, of course, I’d be happy to!”  Sean was beaming.

 

Roy brought it out with a pen, and Riley inscribed it “To Roy and Rita, the stuntman and the beauty queen - we couldn’t have asked for better neighbors!  I hope you like the book!  Always, Riley Maxwell”.  Rita read it out loud and then said, “Oh we are loving it!  Not what happened to you, of course, but you survived!  You are amazing!  Listen to me gushing like a schoolgirl!”

 

With that, Roy and Rita said their goodnights.  Sean and Riley walked back to the house, he couldn’t have been prouder.


	83. Chapter 83

 

A week later, Riley pulled up to the bookstore for her signing with Ghia.  She saw a long line and asked, “Is there something going on?”   
Ghia laughed and said, “Yes, you!”   
“All these people are here for ME?”

“Yes!”

Riley just mumbled, “Wow….”

“Don’t worry, we’ll have you take breaks for food and bathroom and just to rest your hand.”

Ghia parked and they climbed out and people started calling out, “Riley!  Riley!”  She turned and smiled and waved, saying, “Thank you all for coming!  I can’t wait to meet all of you!”

She went inside a side door with Ghia saying, “I don’t believe this!”

“I told you!  People love the book, they relate to you really well because you were and are just like them.  You are just this woman, living her life.  A little unusual, considering who you worked for, but it was just a job to you.  You were just living your life, and you were perfectly ordinary when something extraordinary happened.  It never should have happened, and it did, twice.  You are the ultimate survivor, Riley.  Most of the girls in this line?  They’re survivors, too.  They’ll tell you, you’ll see.”

 

Ghia walked through the back of the bookstore with her and when she opened the door to the main sales floor and the people saw Riley, they started clapping.  Riley had a huge smile on her face, and Ghia snapped a few publicity pics.  The first girl came up and started gushing about how much she loved the book and how it was the most amazing thing she’d ever read.  Riley signed it for her and they took a selfie.  Then on to the next and the next.  She couldn’t believe it.  Some people told her that her story was life changing.  Many confessed that they had been sexually assaulted and that since reading the book, they realized that there was nothing wrong with them, that it wasn’t their fault, and that they were deserving of love, too.  There were men in the line as well.  Some said they’d just picked up the book randomly and fell in love with it.  Some had it suggested to them by their girlfriends….many of whom had been assaulted. They said it really helped them understand what she had gone through.  A few of the men admitted they themselves had been sexually assaulted.  The line moved slowly, as Riley listened to every story, signed every book, posed for every selfie, and hugged everyone that asked.  After 3 hours, they took a break so Riley could rest her hand and get something to eat.  Taking a page from Norman, they calculated how many people were still in line and how many people were working.  Riley called for several pizzas to be delivered and paid for them out of her own pocket.  She felt bad that they had to wait for so long.  That act endeared her to just about everyone.

 

Riley decided to forego a few of her breaks so that she could see more people, only taking a few short bathroom breaks as necessary.  The day began to turn to evening, and finally the end of the line was in sight and inside the bookstore.  Riley was exhausted, but did her best to keep a smile on her face.  Her back was killing her from the hard seat, and Ghia promised from now on, she would make sure Riley had a better chair.  The bookstore they were at was small and independent, and according to the employees, they’d never had so much business.  Many people stayed and talked to each other, and some bought more books.  Riley was glad she could help.     
She was rolling her shoulders and neck to alleviate some pain when the last person came up.  Before she looked up, he said, “Could you sign this to Sean?”  She knew that voice!  She looked up and Sean was smiling down on her.  “Hey there, angel.”

She stood and threw her arms around him from across the table and gave him a kiss.  Some of the customers pulled out their phones laughing to take pictures and videos.    
“What are you doing here?”   
“I came to get my book signed.”   
“What?”   
“I came to get my book signed.”

When Riley had unboxed her books, she kept the first one for herself, and Sean claimed one as well.  And here he was, adorable as hell, and serious about wanting her to sign his book.  “Aw Seanie,” she said softly and she sat back down with a pen.  He crouched down in front of the table and told her quietly, “I’ve got dinner from Mama Julietta’s keeping warm in the oven at home, and the hot tub is always ready for you.  I peeked ahead a few times, and it looks like your back and shoulders are giving you trouble.  We can hot tub for a bit and I can give you a back rub.  Sound good?”   
“Perfect.”   
Ghia had heard him mention having dinner and told him that Riley hadn’t taken proper meal breaks.  Sean frowned at her.  “Riley…”   
“I did it for the people who came to see me.  They all had to just stand there and wait.  I drank plenty of water and took plenty of pee breaks.”   
Ghia told him, “She also ordered 14 large cheese pizzas for everyone in line.”   
Sean laughed at that.  “Taking a page from the Reedus book of con etiquette?”   
“Well, it didn’t look like anyone had packed a lunch…”   
The employees had started to break down the tables, so Sean crossed over to her side.  “I think that’s really sweet of you angel.”

Riley stood and stretched, her back audibly cracking.  “Ugh!”  Several people heard it and turned to ask if she was ok.  “Yeah, just...don’t get old if you can help it.  Things start creaking and cracking.”  Pointing to Sean, she said, “Between me and this guy, we sound like a bowl of Rice Krispies when we wake up.”  The customers laughed, and so did Sean, remembering how just this morning his knee had cracked like a pistol, and the horrified and grossed out look Riley had gotten on her face.

 

Riley started to grab her briefcase, but Sean picked it up and slung it over his shoulder.  “Let’s get you home sweetie.  You look exhausted.  I parked just around the corner.”  Ghia led them out the back way, and they walked slowly for Riley’s benefit to the car.  One she got in and fastened her seatbelt, she said, “I never realized how comfy these seats are.  Sitting in that folding chair all day was murder.”   
“Hm.  Ghia really should have gotten you a better seat.”   
“Don’t blame her.  I had no idea it would hurt so much.  She promised to get me a better seat from now on.  She said she’d bring a desk chair like the one I use if she had to.  This was just a little mom and pop place.  They really didn’t have anything better.”   
“Not taking your breaks probably didn’t help.”   
“Sean, I would have just gone in the back and sat down in another folding chair.  Maybe I’ll start taking my anal sex donut cushion with me from now on, just in case.”   
“That’s actually not a bad idea.”

 

They pulled into the driveway, and Sean carried Riley’s briefcase again as she slowly made her way inside.  “Babygirl, do you want me to carry you?”   
“Absolutely not.”   
Instead of sitting at the kitchen table, he had Riley sit in his recliner and put her feet up and he brought her food on a little lap tray.

“Since neither of us have to do anything tomorrow, how about if we just have a lazy day in bed, Ri?”   
“That sounds good.  We can watch movies and nap and fuck.”   
“Only if your back is up to it.  I don’t want you to really hurt yourself.”   
“I’ll be fine, Sean.  I didn’t injure it doing anything.  It’s just hurting because I’m old and was in a crappy chair.”

 

They ate, then got undressed and headed out to the hot tub.  Riley was in heaven.  She floated on her back as Sean rubbed her feet.  Then she sat with her back against some of the jets, and Sean perched on the edge of the tub behind her, rubbing her shoulders.  He told her, “This is not your back rub, I’m going to give you a real one when we go to bed.”

 

Later they headed up to bed.  Riley lay on her stomach and Sean sat on her cute little butt, with a bottle of lotion and started to rub her back.   He spoke gently, “You’re awful quiet tonight.  Everything ok?”   
“Yeah.  Just….man, so many people told me about their sexual assaults.  They all said how much the book helped them, and I’m really glad, but I wish it hadn’t happened to them.  Even some guys.”   
“Wow, that’s rough.”

“But like I said, it made me feel really good that the book helped them.  So many of them said it made them realize that it wasn’t their fault, and that they deserved to be loved.”

Sean was quiet for a moment, then said, “Have I told how proud I am of you?  Because I really, really am.  You’re such an amazing woman.”

She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled.  “You tell me everyday, even when you don’t say it out loud.”

Sean leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to her back.  “You mean everything to me, Riley.  Everything.”

 

He rubbed her back for a while, then asked if it was feeling any better.  When she didn’t answer he leaned over and saw she was asleep.  As gently as he could, he climbed off of her and covered her with the blanket.  He went downstairs to double check that the doors were locked, the lights were off, and the alarm was set, then headed back up and climbed into bed.  In the dark, he looked at her.  In her sleep, she frowned, and reached her hand out.  Without ever waking up, her hand found him, and she scooted over and wrapped herself around him, and gave a small sigh.   
Sean wrapped his arms around her.  How much longer could he stand to wait?


	84. Chapter 84

They woke up relaxed and sleepy.  Sean woke first, arms around his angel. How she could sleep with her head propped up on his chest all night, he would never know.  Of course, Reedus slept without a pillow at all, and that confused him as well.  He chuckled at the thought, and Riley began to stir.  Those big eyes blinked awake as she focused on him and gave him a sleepy smile.  “Sorry sweetie,” he said softly.  “I didn’t meant to wake you.”   
“Mmm,” she stretched a little under the covers.  “That’s okay.”   
“How’s your back?”  Aw.  He was so concerned.

“It’s fine.  Good, actually.”

“Want some breakfast?”   
She smiled.  “Yes.”   
“Bacon and eggs?”   
“Sausage.”   
“But we don’t have any sau - oh HELLO!”

 

Riley had slid under the covers and was sliding his rapidly hardening cock right into her mouth.  “Oh, you meant Flanery Special Sausage,” Sean said, feeling her smile around it.  She didn’t answer just kept slowly bobbing her head.  He threw back the blankets so he could watch her, reaching down and holding her long hair out of the way.  She looked up at him and sped up. 

Those eyes.  He loved those eyes.  He loved everything about her.

God her mouth felt so good.  For someone who hadn’t been with many guys, she was amazing.

“Come up here and ride me, baby.”   
“Mm-mm.”

“Why not?”   
She pulled off long enough to smile and say, “Because I want my breakfast.”

Well shit.  The way she said that seemed to make him even harder.     
Riley pulled him almost completely out of her mouth, then slid back down, agonizingly slow.  Sean let out a long moan.  Looking down, he realized that her nose was right up against him.  She was deep throating him.  He whispered, “Riley?”  Her response was to swallow against his cock.  It squeezed the head of his cock and he cried out, “Oh fuck yeah!”

She did it several more times as fast as she could, and he couldn’t take anymore.  He wanted to warn her, but all he managed to say was, “FUCK!”  He shot straight down her throat, and it seemed like each time she swallowed, he came even more.  Halfway through, he grunted out, “Suck that cock, girl…”

Finally, he couldn’t come even another drop.  Riley bobbed her head gently on him a few more times, until he said, “Stop, baby, ahh...too much.”  Sliding his length out of her mouth, she crawled up and laid atop him, head on his chest.  He wrapped his arms around her, stroking her back.     
“I love you, Seanie.”   
“I love you, too, Riley.”

After a few minutes, her realized she had fallen back asleep right on top of him.  He smiled, closed his eyes and followed suit.

 

He woke later when he felt her gently slide her warm little body off of his.  She covered him carefully with the blanket, and he heard her moving around the room, then stop.  He cracked his eyes open and saw her.  She was in front of her dresser naked, pulling her hair up into a messy bun.  He watched as she bent over the dresser, putting her face close to the mirror.  Rolling to his side and propping himself up on one elbow, he asked, “What’cha looking at, pretty girl?”  Without even turning, she said, “I have crow’s feet.  Why didn’t you tell me?”

“What?”  he laughed.  “You have no such thing.”   
“I do, too.  Come look.”

Naked as she was, he got out of bed.  She turned and said, “Look.”

He checked the corners of both eyes.  “Baby, I don’t see a thing.  Honestly.”  He really didn’t.

“Ugh!  How can you not?”  She put her face close to the mirror again, saying, “They’re so obvious!”   
“Come here,” he told her.  She stood and he took his face in his hands.  Peering closely, he could barely see a whisper of a line.  “Riley, you are over 40.  You are going to get lines.”   
“So you DO see them!  I knew it!”   
“So what?  Nobody should be getting as close as I had to in order to see them.”   
He watched as she continued to scrutinize her face in close up.  Finally she said, “Maybe I should get Botox.  I can afford  it…”   
“Don’t you dare!”   
“Why not?  It will make me pretty for you.”   
Sean rolled his eyes.  “Jesus Riley.  You ARE pretty for me.  You will ALWAYS be pretty for me.  Even when we’re 80 and have no teeth and white hair and look like a couple of raisins...you will still be the most beautiful girl I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

“But….it’s just a little Botox….”   
He tried another tactic.  “Ok.  Go ahead.  Get Botox and freeze your damn face so you look like a mannequin with no expression.  Be my guest.  I’ll just call my doctor and get a chemical peel.  He told me that’s what I would need to get rid of the lines on my face.”   
“What?  No, you can’t!  I love those lines!”

“You wanna look young forever?  Well I’ll have to look young to keep up.  I’m older so it will take more, but yeah.  I’ll burn off the first few layers of my face to get rid of those lines.”

He was dead serious.  Riley was standing with her mouth hanging open.  “But…..but…”   
“No buts, babygirl.  You ruin your face and I’ll ruin mine.”

“I just….I don’t want to get wrinkled and have you not love me.”   
Sean just started laughing.  He couldn’t help it, it was ridiculous to him. “Riley!  I love you, and yes, you are incredibly beautiful to me, but it’s not just your looks!  How many times do I have to tell you this?”  The exasperation was obvious in his voice, and Riley hung her head.   
“Oh no you don’t,” Sean said, taking her chin and raising her head back up.  His tone softened and he told her, “I will say it one hundred times a day if I have to….one thousand even.  But you have to believe me.  You are everything to me. I was going to move to Senoia to be with you, angel.  I have NEVER offered to leave L.A. for ANYONE.  Just you.  I was going to give up everything here that I worked so hard for: my job, my house, my studio, my reputation.  For you.  I would follow you to the ends of the earth.  I don’t care if you have wrinkles on your face or gray hairs on your head or cellulite on your ass.  And good lord, I hope you feel the same about me.  I’ll be all wrinkled and bald with an old man’s beer belly.”

Riley smiled.  “I bet your bald head and beer belly will be cute.”   
“Okay then.  Just stop.  Please.  I think you are beautiful, and I am looking forward to all the ways we are going to change when we get older.”   
“My tits will be down around my waist…..”   
“ So what?  My nuts will get rug burn from dragging on the floor.”

Riley started laughing.  “Be sure you don’t get them caught in your walker, gramps.”   
“Nah, I’ll get one of those Rascal scooters with the basket in front and put them in there.”

“We’ll get you a bumper sticker that says ‘I Brake for Old People’!”

 

It seemed like he had gotten through to her.  He DID love her, and he WAS looking forward to all the ways they were going to change as they got older.  She was it for him.  If she walked away, there would never be anyone else.  Smiling Sean looked down at her neck.  His smile disappeared.

“Ri….why did you take off your pendant?”   
“I didn’t it’s right here…”  she reached up and there was a panicked look on her face.  “Where is it?  I’ve never taken it off, not since you put it on me!”

“Okay, calm down.  Do you remember having it on last night?”

“Yes, I remember playing with when we were in bed, right before you gave me my back rub.”

Sean thought and said, “Okay, I remember seeing the chain on the back of your neck.  So it must be in the bed.”

 

They both turned and there it was, plain as day.  Sean walked over and picked it up.  The little clasp was broken.  Riley looked devastated, and Sean promised her that he would take it to be fixed the next day.

She pouted at him.  “But I don’t want to wait.” 

Sean walked over to the dresser and placed the necklace on it, then boxed Riley in against it with his arms and body.  “I said I would take it in tomorrow.  At most it will take a day or two.”

“But I don’t want to wait,” she repeated.

“Listen to me, little girl, you can’t always have everything you want when you want it.  You will just….have…..to wait.”

“No, daddy.”   
“Yes, babygirl.”

“I’ll take it myself.”

Sean laughed.  “Be my guest!  Just try and get past me!”

She pushed and fought, even tried to fool him with some of his own BJJ moves.  Finally, she did the only other thing she could think of.     
She tickled him.

Sean was hideously ticklish just about everywhere.   Just when she thought she had him, her grabbed her, pinning her arms behind her back, and spinning her around, her back to him, facing the dresser.  Looking at her in the mirror, he said, “You are really being a little shit today.  Why is that?”   
“I don’t know.”   
“It’s almost like you want me to get angry and punish you.  Is that why?”   
Riley averted her eyes.  “Don’t know….”   
Sean had promised her a spanking when they got settled from going to New York for the wedding.  But that was over a month ago.  They’d been fucking….good lord, had they been fucking.  Fucking like bunnies.  But he’d made a promise and then forgotten.  And Riley, who didn’t like to ask for things in the first place, was definitely not comfortable asking for THAT.  Sean looked at her reflection, kissed her shoulder, then her ear.  He said softly, “I made you a promise that I would spank you once we got back from New York.  Then we got so busy and I forgot.  That’s my fault, angel.”  Her eyes shot to his when he said that.  He gave her a small smile and said, “Daddies make mistakes, too.  And I definitely did.  I wish you would have said something.  Why do you have a problem with it?”

“Because Kevin.”   
“Kevin beat the crap out of you, there’s a big difference-”   
“He spanked me, Sean,” she said pushing him away from her and sitting on the bed.  “The second time he attacked me.  Right after I woke up in that old barn, he flipped me over on that table on my stomach and he spanked my ass and thighs until they were purple.  And I didn’t like it, and it wasn’t sexy, and I cried.”   
“They never said anything about it when we asked about your injuries.”

Looking up at him, she said, “With everything else that was done to me, they probably just assumed it was from him beating me.  The doctor told me there wasn’t an inch on me that wasn’t bruised or cut or injured in some way.  One of the doctors told me I was in the worst shape he’d ever seen when they brought me in.  They were surprised that I survived...even though I flatlined twice.”   
Sean sat down next to her, both of them looking at the floor.  “Okay.  Did you ever talk to your therapist about this?”   
“Yeah.”   
“What did she have to say?”   
Riley sighed and told him, “She said that he did it to cause pain and humiliate me.  That when you do it, it’s different.  I know that I can stop you.  I know that you love me.  And even if you call me names, you don’t mean it, and you told me that much yourself.  She said it was okay to enjoy it, it was okay to want it.  But it’s hard for me to ask for it.  Which is stupid I know because I ask for you to fuck me.  He fucked me with his tiny little cock, but it doesn’t make me want it any less from you.”   
Sean thought for a long moment.  “Maybe it’s because society thinks it’s ‘weird’ or ‘wrong’.  Kind of like calling me ‘daddy’.  But something like 85% of all people have engaged in some sort of light BDSM, and spanking falls under that.  That dead dickhole isn’t allowed to decide what you like or what you want or what you’re comfortable with.  Only my Riley-girl gets to decide that.  Okay?”

She nodded and then said, “Daddy?”   
“Yes, babygirl?”   
“Would you….w-would you...s-spank me?”


	85. Chapter 85

Riley couldn’t meet his eyes as she asked.  He didn’t force her to.  Even saying it was a big deal for her.  He didn’t answer her.  Instead her stood and took her hand, leading her back to the dresser and bending her over it.  He softly said, “You can look in the mirror, but you cannot stand.  Do you understand?”   
“Yes daddy.”

He whispered softly, “That’s my good little girl….” and ran his hand down her back.  He walked over to his dresser and pulled his leather gloves out of the drawer.  Turning to walk back, she was resting her head her head on her arms and watching him in the mirror.  He placed the folded gloves on her backside, and placed his hands on either side of her on the dresser.  Leaning down, he watched her watching him.  He kissed her back softly and then stood.  They were both still naked, and he pressed his hardness against her.  He took a step back, and slowly put on one glove and then the other.  He noticed the telltale fidgeting as she tried to surreptitiously rub her thighs together.  “Already getting wet, aren’t you, babygirl?”  She nodded and lowered her eyes.  “Spread your legs, angel.  You know the rules.”  Riley did as she was told.  Sean reached down and grabbed her ass and squeezed. “Fucking LOVE your ass, girl.”  Without any warning he slapped both sides he had been squeezing.  Riley let out a yelp.  Sean took a step back, pacing like a caged animal.  “Let’s hear it: harder, softer, or the same?”

Riley huffed out a laugh.  “Is that the best you can do?”

Sean was shocked.  He pinned her down to the dresser by the back of her neck with one big hand and leaned down.  “What did you just say to me?”   
“You heard me.”

“Little girl, I will tan your ass like you can’t imagine.”

“Not if the best you can do are little love taps.”

“You’d better watch that attitude.  Just because I haven’t taken a belt to you, it doesn’t mean I won’t.” 

He didn’t miss Riley rolling her eyes at him.

 

Sean let go of her neck and took a step back.  Then he hit her ass much harder.  She yelped again and he asked, “You ready to apologize for being a brat?”   
Over her shoulder, she said, “You ready to stop hitting like a bitch?”

 

He paced a few times behind her.  Turning, he saw her looking at him in the mirror, with a bored look on her face. 

He hit her 5 times on each side, fast and HARD.  Before he could say anything, she whimpered out, “More, daddy!  HARDER!”

“Baby, I don’t know if I should go any harder.”   
“PLEASE, daddy!” she begged.

He gave her a few whacks on each side, as hard as he could, and still, she cried for more.  He hit her several times on each side, again and again, until his hands were sore in spite of the gloves.  He took them off and threw them on the dresser.  Still Riley begged for more, and harder.  “Baby,” he panted, leaning down over her body, “I can’t.  I gave you as hard as I can.  My hands are on fire.”   
“Daddy...please….” she was practically sobbing.

“What’s happening, angel?”   
“I don’t...I can’t...more!”   
“I can’t angel.  I physically can’t.”

“Get the belt!”   
“WHAT?  NO!” he hadn’t been serious.  But now he watched Riley, writhing against the dresser, clawing at the wood, begging him...no, he couldn’t.  Could he?  Maybe he could give her a few taps and that would be enough.

As he walked toward the closet, she calmed with her whimpering, watching him take a belt out.  He folded it in half, and snapped it against itself, making her jump.  “You still want this?”   
“YES!  I NEED it.”

 

Walking behind her, he watched her reflection.  Looking between her spread legs, she was so wet, it was almost starting to run down her legs.  He sank two fingers into her easily and pumped them a few times, then pulled them out and licked them clean, her watching him in the mirror the whole time.  He gave her a few gentle taps with the belt, and the frustration was evident on her face.  

 

He brought the belt back and smacked her across the ass with it, the crack echoing through the room.

 

Things seemed to move in slow motion.  He watched as Riley’s eyes rolled back in her head, she let out a long, gutteral groan, and her legs gave out.  Dropping the belt, he jumped forward to catch her before she hit the ground.  He gathered her up in his arms, and quickly carried her over to the bed.  He tried to lay her down, but she put her arms around him and wouldn’t let go.  She wasn’t responding to his questions.

“Riley?  Baby?  Are you okay?  Do I need to call an ambulance?”   
She wasn’t responding much besides small whimpers and grunts.  She didn’t seem to be in actual distress or pain, but he wasn’t sure what to do.  He grabbed his phone with Riley still curled up on his lap and started googling everything he could think of having to do with someone passing out after getting spanked.  She wasn’t unconscious, she was awake, but she wasn’t responding, and that’s what worried him.  He finally came across a word: “subspace”.  Googling that was frustrating, it dealt with math and weird dimensions.  Finally he saw an urban dictionary definition and clicked on it.  Pay dirt.   
  
“subspace

In a D/s relationship, that very special place the submissive enters when he/she totally trusts his/her Dominant, and totally immerses in an intense scene. The sub may not be capable of making rational decisions about his/her safety and well-being at this point.

It is the responsibility of the Dom to provide for the welfare of his/her sub, as he/she has trusted him to do. It is also the Dom's responsibility after the scene to help the sub to return to ‘vanilla space’ after the scene. This entails providing both physical and emotional assurance to the sub, until he/she regains his/her sense of self, and is known as, ‘aftercare’.”

 

Okay, this was making more sense.  He remembered reading in some trashy porn mag about BDSM sex clubs a while back, and how aftercare was extremely important.  He felt horrible for having spanked her so many times, and not actively consoled her.  Although he'd NEVER pushed her away, and Riley had no problems coming to him for affection, he’d never even thought about something like aftercare, and was angry at himself.  

So he just held her on his lap and rocked her.  Told her she’d put her body through a lot today, and they needed to be careful of that.  Told her that when she was ready, he’d put a cool washcloth on her behind and then some aloe vera because a good daddy takes care of his babygirl, and he hoped he was a good daddy.  Finally, he heard her tiny voice.  “You ARE a good daddy.”  He heaved a sigh of relief.  She was talking and making sense.  He looked down at her, so small in his arms.  “You coming back to me, angel?”   
“Mmhmm.  I have to pee.”

“Do you need my help?”   
“I don’t know…”   
He helped her off his lap, and to the bathroom.  Her legs were wobbly at first, but then she was fine.  She was about to close the door and her told her, “Be sure to sit gently.”   
“Yes daddy.”

 

He hung up the belt in the closet.  He sat on the bed and waited for her to come out.  When she did, he said, “Baby, I want you to know I love you.  I know I said I’d do anything for you, but I can’t use a belt on you again.  I just can’t.  You scared the shit out of me.”   
“I don’t want you to use it on me ever again.”   
Sean was confused and told her.  She climbed into bed and motioned for him to do the same.  When they were all snuggled in she told him, “I needed it.  I can’t explain it.  I think it’s because we brought him up, maybe.”   
“Ah.  Yeah, I’d be happy to keep him out of our bedroom, but I was glad you told me what you did.  But why the belt?”

“I needed something to….’break’ me, I guess.  I wanted him out of my head, so I needed you to hurt me worse.”   
“I never want to hurt you, Riley!  Why the hell would you make me do that?  God dammit!”   
“Sean, stop.  Please listen, try to understand.  I needed someone who loved me, someone that I could stop if I needed to.  Someone who I knew would never otherwise do it.  I needed you to hurt me because I knew you loved me.  I needed you to hurt me because I knew you would stop.  I needed you to hurt me because….I needed to survive it.  It had to be you.  I’m sorry.”  She lowered her head.

“Why didn’t you just tell me?”   
“Because I didn’t know how.  I mean, I didn’t know what words to use until just now.  I didn’t try to hide it or deceive you.  Besides, during spankings, it can sometimes be hard for me to say what I need other then ‘harder’ or ‘more’.  I communicated the best I could, Sean.”  She looked up at him from where she was snuggled to him.  “I promise, that’s the honest  truth.”   
Sean let out a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding.  “I believe you.  But you were really goading me there.  I’m not sure I liked it.”   
“I’m not sure I did either.  Do you forgive me?”   
“Always, angel.  I don’t love you any less.  I think I may love you a lot more.  How about you?”   
“I love you more every day,” Riley told him, and his heart melted.

“So much for breakfast,” he chuckled as  they dozed off for a nap.


	86. Chapter 86

After taking a nap, Sean tended to Riley’s poor, abused little butt.  She was going to have some bruises that were going to last for a long time.  He felt guilty at having done it, but at the same time, he was starting to understand.  His poor angel had been through so much in her life.  Not just with Kevin, even before.  Partners that had treated her poorly, the sudden and unexpected death of her parents, living at times wherever she could, hoping for some stability.  She’d had some stability in Portland, before moving to Senoia.  And then she had it again with Norman.  Norman would have let her stay with him until they were old and gray.  But now she was here.  She was his.  And he gladly accepted that responsibility.  He loved her.  He would until the day he died.

 

They spent the day in bed, watching movies and napping.  Well, Riley napped.  He watched her.  He knew it was kind of creepy to watch her sleep, but he did it anyway.  While they were watching one of the movies, he got up to use the bathroom, and when he got back, she was laying on her side, fast asleep.  He didn’t want to risk waking her by pulling her close, so instead he lay on his side facing her so he could watch her.  Her little nose twitching that she only did in her sleep.  The lips moving as if she were speaking, then quirking up in a smile.  The giggles and mumbling she sometimes did - he was glad she was laughing in her sleep instead of crying or screaming.  Her eyes moving back and forth under her lids, following the action of her mind’s eye.  And the best part, when she smiled softly and said in the quietest whisper, “Sean.”  He reached over and stroked her hair, and her eyes fluttered open.  “Hi”, she smiled at him sleepily.

“Hi, princess.  I didn’t mean to wake you.”   
“It’s okay,” she told him, then frowned.  “Ugh.  I need to go brush my teeth.”

She hopped out of bed and sashayed her bruised little ass into the bathroom. 

 

While she was gone, he got up and took a closer look at the necklace.  He’d have to see if they could replace the broken clasp with a stronger one.  After all, Riley had never taken it off.  He never realized how truly naked she looked without it until he’d seen it off.  And that look of panic on her face when she realized it was gone, that was terrible.  She sidled up to him, pressing her warm little body against his.  “You okay, mister?”   
“Yep.  When I take this in tomorrow, I’ll see if they can put a stronger clasp.  Maybe regular metal.  Gold is really soft.  But just for the closure, not the whole chain.  You looked so scared when you realized it was gone.”   
“I’ve never taken it off.”   
“I know.  You really look naked without it.  I mean like REALLY naked.”

“I feel weird without it, too.  I hope they can fix it quickly.”

 

She looked up at him and gave him a big smile.  “I really love you, you know that?”   
“I sure do.  And I really love you, too.  Can I kiss you now that you brushed your teeth?  I brushed mine earlier.  I even flossed.”   
“Oh now I know you love me, you flossed!”

He laughed and led her back to bed while the movie on the TV droned on, but they didn’t care about it anymore.  

Sean pulled Riley down on top of him and kissed her.  “How did I get so lucky, girl?”

Riley smiled and asked, “How did I?”

“You know you’re never getting away from me, right?”

“Do I look like I want to?”

Sean rolled over on top of her, his hard on pressing into her hip.  Riley asked, “Is that for me?”   
“Maybe.  If you promise to be a good girl.”   
“I’m ALWAYS a good girl.”   
“You weren’t earlier.  You were pretty much a little shit earlier.”   
“I apologized!” she pouted at  him in the cutest way.

“That you did, sweetheart,” he said as he started kissing her again.  Within seconds, their kisses became more heated and desperate, and Sean needed to be inside her.  No matter how many times he was, it was never enough.  He couldn’t imagine being apart from her again.  He knew he would have to, here and there, but knowing that he was going to be able to come home to her...that was priceless.  She was in his house.  In THEIR house.  Right where she belonged.  Tooling around L.A. in her beloved Herbie, making friends with his neighbors.

“You ready for me baby?” he asked her breathlessly.

“Always,” she whispered.

He slid into her, and both of them moaned.  “Does it feel good when I’m inside you, Ri?”   
She smiled at him.  “It feels...right.  Like it’s supposed to.  Does that make sense?”   
“Perfect sense.”

 

Sean felt Riley’s hands running along his back, she loved the feel of his muscles moving, and closed his eyes.  “It does feel right baby.  I’ve always thought so.  When I came back to you, all I could think was that I finally felt right.  I’ve felt right ever since.  This is right, angel.  You and me.  This is how it’s supposed to be.”

He was pumping into her at a slow pace, he knew that drove Riley crazy.  She was squirming, trying to get more friction, letting out little whimpers. 

“Sean, I need more.”   
“More what?  My dick doesn’t get any bigger than it is!”

He made Riley laugh with that one.  “Thank god, because it’s plenty big!  Any bigger and you’d punch a hole right through me!”   
Now it was Sean’s turn to laugh.  He kissed her nose and said softly, “You need faster?”  Riley nodded and he sped up, making her release a satisfied moan.  “That’s my girl,” he said, as she wrapped her legs around his waist.  He dipped his head into her neck and started kissing all those little spots the made her breath hitch.  He dipped his head even lower and started licking and sucking her nipples.  She breathed out, “Oh fuck yes…”   
“Foul language.  I’d spank you if I was mean,” he grinned.

Riley grinned back and said, “Fuck you, you’d better not!”   
“I wouldn’t, I think you’ve been punished plenty today.  But I will do this,” he said, pulling up one of her legs, putting it up on his shoulder.  He loved having her legs up on his shoulders, he was able to fuck her so much deeper.  She pushed her other leg up as well, practically folding herself in half.

She gasped as Sean pushed himself in her.  He smiled and said, “Well, well.  Looks like your g spot wants to come out and play, Riley.  Gonna squirt for me, dirty girl?”   
“Fuck me harder and I will.”   
“Grab the headboard.”   
  
Riley reached above her head and braced her hands against the headboard, and Sean started to really ram into her, knocking her breath out of her in sharp gasps, and she still begged for him to do it harder.  She was rocking her hips up to meet his.  Sean was sweating like crazy, and it was rolling of of his body and dripping onto her, he’d never seen anything sexier.  He looked down between them, his swollen cock sliding in and out of her impossibly tiny little pussy, cunt lips stretched around his member.  “Look at that, Riley!  Look at that cock you’re taking, dirty girl!”

Riley looked down, and that was all it took.

He felt her tighten up on him even more, and then unloaded on him.  “I’m fucking cumming, Sean!”   
“Fucking gush all over me, you beautiful bitch!”

Then his back arched, and he let out a deep groan with each stream of cum he shot into her. 

 

Holding himself up on shaky arms, he gently lowered her legs from his shoulders, then put his face close to hers.  He rubbed his nose against her for a few seconds, then kissed her very gently.

Rolling off her to the side and pulling her close, he took a deep breath and used the back of his hand to wipe the sweat off his forehead.  “I should get a towel so you don’t have to lay all on my sweat…” he stopped looking down at her.  She was already curled up in her spot against him and asleep.  He wondered if when a girl actually squirts if it had the same effect as when a guy cums, because that shit wore him out.  He was more used to it then she was, but back in the day, his girlfriends had gotten pissed at him for pretty much passing out.

 

They slept for several more hours, then got up and raided the refrigerator.  They hadn’t eaten all day, and it was getting near dinner.  He turned to watch her pull a couple of beers out of the fridge.

_ ‘I’m going to marry her.  Period.’ _

He almost asked her right then and there, but he wanted to at least have a ring...and he had the perfect excuse to look for one tomorrow.


	87. Chapter 87

Sean woke before Riley the next morning, sliding out from under her, although he wanted nothing more than to stay right where he was.  He took a quick shower, and was just about to head out when he heard her sleepy voice.

“Seanie?”

He sat down on her side of the bed and looking at her.  Her hair was sticking up at crazy angles, she had a mark from a pillowcase across her face, and she was rubbing her eyes like a baby with her fist.  Dear lord, was she ever NOT cute?   
“I’m here, princess.  About to head out.  What do you need?”   
“Out?  Where are you going?”   
“I’m taking your necklace to be fixed.”   
“Oh.  Do you want me to come with?  I can get up and-”   
“No!”  He said it so quickly and with such force, he caught her off guard.     
She gave him a look.  “Yeesh.  Okay, Mr Grumpypants.”   
Sean laughed and gave her a kiss on the forehead.  “I’m sorry, didn’t mean for it to come out like that.  Got some other errands I need to run as well.  Gonna swing by my agent’s office and stuff.  Why don’t you just go back to sleep for a bit?  You look like you’re not quite wanting to be awake.”   
“Good idea,” she said, dropping her head back down on the pillow.  Sean grabbed his wallet, phone, keys, and her necklace.  It seemed like she was asleep again already.  He leaned down and gave a gentle kiss to her naked back, wanting nothing more than to get naked and cuddle under the covers with her.  He paused, seriously considering it, but if he stayed, she would end up going with him later and mess up his plans.     
“See you in a bit, princess.  I love you.”   
She mumbled back something that might have been “I love you”....but really, it sounded suspiciously like “cheese fries”.  Yep, she was asleep.

 

He got coffee around the corner from the jewelry store while he waited for them to open.  The sign on the door said they opened at 10.  At 10 on the dot, he walked over just as the woman was opening the door.  She smiled at him, “Good morning young man!  I remember you!”   
“You do?”   
“Why yes!  You bought a white gold heart pendant from us, we engraved ‘Sean + Riley’ on it.”   
“Wow, I can’t believe you remember that!”

“Some customers are more memorable than others.  You were so nervous and happy...I remember it.  Did your lady friend like it?”   
“She loved it.  She cried when I gave it to her.  But last night the clasp broke….” he pulled it out of his pocket and showed it to her, explaining that it had fallen off as she slept.  He asked if they could fix it, and replace the clasp with metal instead of gold.

 

The woman looked at the broken clasp.  “We will definitely fix this, at no charge.  I believe we have some new clasps that are metal coated in the white gold.  After all, you don’t want her neck to turn green!  Let me just run this to the boys in the back and see how long it will take.”

 

She walked to a back room and Sean could hear her chatting with someone.  She came back out and said, “He can do it right now, it will take about 15 minutes.  You are welcome to wait or if you’re busy and want to come back I could write out a pick-up slip for you.”

“I’ll just wait, that’s not long at all,” Sean said as he slowly walked around looking in the glass cases.  “Um...do you have engagement rings, ma’am?”

The woman smiled.  She had a feeling that he was there for more than a broken clasp.  She walked over to a glass case on the other side of the room.  “Right over here.”

 

Sean looked through the glass at them.  While all of them were pretty, none of them seemed right.  Norman had gotten Lisa a rather large diamond, but Riley had confided in Sean that while she thought it was beautiful and suited Lisa perfectly, that she would have felt uncomfortable with such a large stone.  Riley was a girl who liked simple things.

The woman brought the tray out from the glass case so he could have a closer look.  He picked up a few for a closer look, but put them back.  He was hoping to find something there, he didn’t want to go to some chain store.  “They’re all really pretty,” he told the lady, “but they aren’t right for Riley.”

The lady put the tray back in the case and said, “Tell me a little bit about her, maybe then I can recommend something.”   
  


So Sean started talking about her.  How she was strong, how she’d survived.  How he’d always thought she was beautiful, from the first day he saw her.  How he’d pursued her almost relentlessly, then, with shame in his voice, how he’d abandoned her.  How he’d come back and literally begged on his knees, and she forgave him.  How she was fiercely independent.  How she made him smile just by thinking about of her.  How he couldn’t imagine his life without her.  “All these rings are really beautiful,” Sean told her, “but none of them are ‘Riley’.  She’s not a big diamond kind of girl.  She likes simple things.”  The woman smiled at him.  “I think we may have something that would work.  We have a ring that we weren’t sure what we were going to do with it.  One of our employees found it at an estate sale.  It’s a vintage ring.  But the diamonds are rather small, these days everyone believes bigger is better, when that isn’t necessarily true.  We had it in the display for a while, but everyone just passed right over it.”  She walked over to another case and opened a drawer beneath it, pulling out a typical velvet covered ring box.  She opened it, and if Sean was a swooner, he would have swooned.  He took it out of the box and slid it on his pinky.  It barely went past his fingernail, but Riley’s hands were much smaller than his.

He just looked at it for a moment, then smiled.  The woman reached into a drawer behind her and pulled out a jeweler’s loupe for him to look through, telling him, “The total carat weight is 1 carat.  The small diamonds on each side are .25, and the one in the middle is .50.  The band is white gold, which was rare and treasured at the time it was made, we believe it was the early 1920’s. It seems to be completely handmade, so there are some slight irregularities, but the diamonds, as you can see, are absolutely perfect.”   
Looking through the loupe, she was right.  There were slight irregularities in the band and the scroll work, but he knew Riley would love that.  With her scars, she valued imperfections.  But the diamonds themselves, they were perfect.  Clear and bright.  Whoever had owned it had taken very good care of it.  He knew Riley would, too. 

Putting the loupe down, he hadn’t stopped smiling.  “This is it,” he said.  “This is the ring for her.  I’ll take it.”  He put it back in the box and pulled out his credit card.

The woman laughed and said, “Don’t you want to know how much it is?”   
“I suppose I should, but honestly, money is no object.  Not for this ring.  Not for her.”   
“Alright.  It’s $1500.”   
“That’s it?”   
“Like I told you: smaller diamonds, and imperfections in the ring itself.  Everybody wants perfect, machine made rings with big diamonds.”   
“I can’t imagine her with any other ring.  She’ll love this one.”

 

Just as she finished ringing up his purchase, one of the jewelers came out of the back with Riley’s necklace.  He showed Sean the new clasp, and told him it was guaranteed for life.  “If it breaks for any reason, even if she catches it on something and accidentally pulls it off and it snaps, you bring it back and we’ll fix it again.  It’s titanium covered in white gold, so it should last a lifetime.  We ran the whole thing through the cleaner real quick so it’s nice and shiny for you.”   
“Hey, thanks, man!”  Sean said, shaking the guys hand.  It looked good as new.  He put the necklace in one pocket and the ring in the other.  He really wanted to propose special, not like the mess when he gave her the necklace or the housekey.  He knew he could do better than either one of those times.  He also hoped she would say yes.

 

When he got home, Riley was at her computer typing away.  She looked up and smiled at him.  “Hi Seanie!  Will they be able to fix it?”   
“They already did,” he told her, pulling it out of it’s pocket.  As he fastened it around her neck, he told her how the clasp was stronger and guaranteed.  “So if it ever breaks again, they’ll fix it for free.”  He told her about how they cleaned it and everything.  They chatted for awhile, wondering if maybe the chlorine from the pool and hot tub had corroded the original metal.  Suddenly, Riley’s Skype rang.

“Hey, it’s Norman!” she said happily and she answered it.  

They had been back from their honeymoon for a couple of months settling back into their routine.

As soon as they turned on the Skype, they saw both Norman and Lisa smiling.  Lisa exclaimed, “Hi kids!”

Riley told them, “We got your postcard, it sounds like it was really paradise!”   
“It was!” Norman told them.  “I mean, I love my fans, I really do.  But for our honeymoon, we really wanted to get away, and we did.  People can’t get within a mile of this place without a reservation, so we really got to just be alone.  It was the best vacation I’ve ever had.”   
Riley and Sean both noticed that he did look visibly well rested, even now.

“Anyway,” Norman continued, “we’re going to be in L.A. in a month for that Walking Dead con.  We thought maybe we could extend our stay and visit?  We’ll stay in the hotel-”   
“You’ll do no such thing!” Sean interrupted.  “If you want to stay there to be close to the convention, that’s fine, but when it’s over, you are staying at our house.”  Riley nodded in agreement, saying, “Our house is your house.”

 

They chatted for a few more minutes, and Norman promised to get in touch to finalize everything in a week or so and they ended the call.  In Georgia, Norman looked at Lisa and said, “‘Our house’.  Did you catch that?”   
“I did.  And they both said it.”   
“Good.  I was still worried about Ri.  Now I can stop.”   
“But you won’t. You’re her best friend.  You will always care for and worry about her.”   
He pulled Lisa close.  “You’re right.  And I’m glad you understand.”

 

Back in L.A., Sean ran upstairs and hid the ring way back in the corner of the drawer in his nightstand.  He would ask her, he just wanted the right moment.  It would be after Norm and Lisa’s visit.  He wanted Norman’s opinion.  Norman always seemed to be good with women and big, romantic gestures.  Sean was an idiot when it came to those things.     
He thought back to when he’d proposed to Lauren; he’d gotten down on one knee and everything.  Before she said yes, she said, “It’s about time.”  And not in a funny joking way.  Ugh.  He was so glad she wasn’t part of his life anymore.  He needed to quit comparing her to Riley….even though Riley came out on top every time.  No surprise there.  He was so happy she was with him.

Sean went back downstairs, and they spent the day in companionable silence as they both worked on their books.  After Riley had woken up that morning, she had thrown some stuff in the crock pot so they would have dinner later.

While they ate, she told him, “I’m so glad Norman and Lisa are coming.  I really miss them.  But I wouldn’t go back for anything.”   
Sean’s heart swelled.  “Really?”   
“Well yeah.  I like it here.  Nice people, great weather, and I get to sleep with a hot guy every single night who I am madly in love with.  And I think he likes me, too,” she smiled.

“I sure do.  Think I’ll keep you around, pretty girl.  Maybe forever.”   
Riley just laughed and cleared the table.


	88. Chapter 88

Sean just watched as Riley puttered around the kitchen, wrapping up the leftovers, clearing the table, and putting the dishes in the dishwasher.  He tried to help, but she shooed him away.  He was watching her with a little smile on his face, just because she was so cute.

Riley put the last of the dirty dishes in the dishwasher and turned, wiping her hands on a dish towel.  Sean was sitting there with that adorable smile on his face.

“What are you smiling at, Flanery?”

He didn’t answer, instead crooked his finger at her as he pushed his chair away from the table and patted his lap.

“Oh you want me to sit on your lap?  Do I get to tell you what I want for Christmas?  Should I call you Santa Claus?”

He again crooked his finger at her and patted his lap, but didn’t say a word.  Riley hung up the dish towel.   
“And you’re a mute, too?  Can’t say ‘hey babe, please come sit on my lap’, can you?” she was teasing him for all she was worth, standing there barefoot in one of her little sundresses, leaning back against the counter.   
Sean let his eyes slowly travel down her body and back up again.  Finally he spoke.  “You can come over here, or I can come over there and get you….and if I have to get up, it won’t end well for your little bottom, missy.”

 

Riley pushed away from the counter at that remark and walked over to him.  Her butt was still bruised from the belt.  “That’s not fair,” she said with a pout as she walked over to him.     
“I know,” he smiled.  “Haven’t you figured out that I play dirty?  Now come here and sit on my lap.”   
She smiled at him and said, “I can play dirty, too.” Instead of plopping down on his lap, she threw one leg over him and straddled him.   
“Mmmm, I like the way you play dirty.”   
“Is that so?”

Sean started to kiss her neck and chest.  He murmured something, and Riley asked, “What did you say?”   
“Forever my pretty girl….”

“Yep.  All yours.”   
“Forever, Riley.  Tell me forever.”     
Riley turned his face up to hers.  He seemed to be in some sort of emotional distress.   
“Sean?  What-”   
“PLEASE, baby.  Say forever...please…”   
“Forever, Sean.  You know that.  I’m not going anywhere.  For as long as you want me, if that’s forever, then yes.  Forever.”

 

He grabbed the back of her head and pulled her down somewhat roughly to kiss her, full of fire and passion.  He thought of the ring.  He thought of spending the rest of his life with her.  “I love you so much, Ri…”

“I know it, baby.  I love you, too.  I’ve never been happier than I am here with you.”   
  


Sean slid the dress up her body, pulling it off over her head.  He looked at her body in some sexy, lacy white lingerie.  “Look at you in white lace like some innocent little angel.  Not today you aren’t,” he growled.  Pushing her off his lap, he told her, “Take it off.  All of it.  Nice and slow.”  He unzipped his shorts and pulled his cock out, stroking it as he watched her.  

Riley slid the straps off of her shoulders, then reached back with one hand to unhook her bra, and pulled it off, letting it drop to the kitchen floor.  She turned her back to him and hooked her fingers into the waistband of her lace panties.  Bending over, she slowly slid them down her legs, exposing her perfect ass, still bruised, then her puffy little pussy lips, already slick with moisture, making Sean’s cock ache.  The panties fell to the floor and she stepped out of them, then turned to face Sean.  “Now what?” she asked softly.

“Suck my cock, angel.  Like you were born to do it.”

Riley knelt in front of him and said, “Your tank top needs to go.”   
He pulled it off just as she was sliding his dick into her mouth agonizingly slow.  Halfway down, she slid back up.  Each time she slid her mouth down, she would push him in a little deeper than before, until he felt himself hit the back of her throat.  Looking up at him with his head thrown back, she swallowed against the head of his cock.  To her surprise, he grabbed her hair gently, and pulled her back a bit.  “You do that and I’ll blow my load right now.  I want to cum in that tight pussy of yours, just want a little bit of those lips around my cock first.”

Riley started bobbing her head again, careful to not let him go too deep.  She reached up, running her hands across his chest, and playing with his nipples, making his breath hitch.  Running her nails across his six pack abs, over his hips, and down his thighs.  She loved his body, it was so beautiful.

He started to moan, then suddenly said, “Stop, angel.”  She watched as he reached down and squeezed the base of his cock, and took a few deep breaths.  He looked at her, smiled, and asked, “Hey cowgirl.  Wanna take a ride?”

“Yee-fuckin’-haw!”

He stood and took off his shorts, then sat back down, and Riley straddled him, lowering herself onto him.  Sean looked at Riley and said, “Ride me hard, Riley.  Fucking use me.”  Riley froze momentarily.  Sean had always been the dominant in their relationship.  He nodded at her.  The look on his face said it all.  He needed her to take charge.  Maybe just this once, maybe many more times.  But he needed it now and he needed it BAD.

“Please, angel.”

Riley didn’t know what to do, but apparently her subconscious did, as she heard herself tell him, “Shut up.  You will fucking speak when spoken to.”

Sean’s eyes flashed with desire, then he lowered them and said quietly, “Yes, mistress.”

Riley had to admit, that kind of turned her on.

“You will not cum until I say so, do you understand me?”

Sean nodded, and she slapped him - not hard, but hard enough to get his attention.  He looked at her, and she could feel his cock twitch inside her.  She told him, “When I ask you a question, I expect an answer!  Again, you will not cum until I say so.  Do you understand?”   
“Yes, mistress.  I’m sorry.”

She started riding him and guided his head to her nipples, telling him, “You know what to do.”  He immediately started licking and sucking them for all he was worth, looking up to her for approval.  She stopped what she was doing and pulled off of him, his cock bobbing and straining for her.  He looked up at her questioningly.   
“Mistress?  Did I do something wrong?”   
She sat on the kitchen table and opened her legs.  “I sucked your dick.  Return the favor.”   
“Yes, mistress, thank you.”

 

She kind of liked this side of things.

 

Sean went to town on Riley.  She loved the way his big blue eyes looked up to her now and then for approval.  She would give him a nod and stroke his hair so he knew he was doing a good job.  Smiling down at him, she told him, “Suck on my clit and make me cum, like a good little boy.”   
He immediately moved his mouth over her clit and started sucking on it in a delicious way.  Riley was writhing and moaning on the table.  She grabbed his hair (as if he’d try to get away), and really started to grind against him.  “That’s right, suck on that clit!  Make me cum, you bastard!”  That made Sean’s eyebrows shoot up, he liked that!  He gave her quick rhythmic suction and that pushed her over the edge.  She came bucking against his face with the sexiest moans he’d ever heard.

After a few moments, she pushed him away with a shove to his forehead.  He looked at her as he licked his lips, unsure of what to do.  She slid off of the table and stood in front of him, hands on her hips and said, “Well?  What do you say?”   
Realization dawned in his eyes and he said, “Thank you, mistress.  I loved every second.”   
His erection bobbed against his stomach.  Riley asked, “Did you touch your cock while you were licking me?”   
“No, mistress!” he told her, full of sincerity.  “I had my arms wrapped around your thighs.  You didn’t give me permission, so I didn’t.”

Leaning down, Riley gave him a gentle kiss.  “You’re right.  So obedient.  You deserve a reward.  Would you like me to fuck you?”   
Lowering his eyes in subservience, he answered, “Yes, very much so.  But I know it’s your decision, and I know that I’m not allowed to cum until you say.”

 

She tilted his chin up and looked at him.  He was still needing this.  And his poor cock was straining for her like a damn magnet.  Without another word, she straddled and sank down on him, eliciting a moan from him.  “Tell me what it feels like inside my pussy.”   
Poor Sean was doing his best not to cum as she was riding him and riding him hard.  Bouncing on his cock with those tits jiggling right in his face.   
“It’s feels like velvet.  Hot, wet, velvet.  Wrapped around me so tight, sliding faster and faster.  Mistress, you feel like heaven!”   
“I’m going to cum, but don’t you dare!”   
“I won’t, I promise, mistress!”   
  
Riley exploded around his cock, bucking wildly with Sean holding on to her to keep her from falling off of him completely and onto the floor.  Sean was gritting his teeth, holding on, and not cumming.  Finally, Riley’s body started to calm, just small twitches here and there.  Sometime during her orgasm, she had slammed her eyes shut.  And when she opened them, she saw Sean, still straining against his own release.

“Mistress, please!”   
“You keep your eyes open and you look at me, do you understand?”   
“Yes!”   
Riley froze, looked him dead in the eye, tightened up on him and said, “Cum.”

 

Sean had promised he’d keep his eyes open, but he wasn’t sure if he had, because he fucking saw stars.  Riley watched as his eyes rolled back in his head and his body jerked spastically under her, almost throwing her off his cock at one point.  He was grunting with each shot she felt him release inside of her, hot and thick.  His eyes slammed shut, and tears streamed out of the corners.  Finally spent, his eyes opened and focused on her, then he dropped his head to her chest, saying over and over almost crying, “Oh my god, oh my god…”   
Riley put her arms around him and held him.  “It’s okay, Sean.  Everything’s okay.  I’ve got you.  I’m not going anywhere.  It’s all okay…”

He finally did start crying, sobbing over and over, “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!”  She stayed on his lap where she was, stroking his hair, and murmuring words of love and encouragement, telling him that he didn’t need to apologize for anything.  His soft cock slid out of her, and he put his hand under her, to catch any jizz that leaked out.  Eventually, he calmed down.  She told him, “I’m going to the bathroom, I’ll be right back, okay?”  Sean nodded, unable to look at her.  She went and cleaned herself up, and Sean washed his hands in the kitchen sink and put his shorts back on.  

Riley threw her dress on, ignoring her underwear for the moment.  She looked at Sean, his shoulders slumped in shame.  Taking his hand, she brought him back over to the table to sit down.   
“We should talk a little about this, Sean.  I’m not mad, and I didn’t mind.  How come you never told me you wanted that?”   
“Because I’m supposed to be a man.”   
“What?  You ARE a man.  Do you think less of me when I let you spank me or when I call you daddy?”   
Sean was taken aback at that.  “No!  Of course not!”   
“I don’t think any less of you for calling me Mistress and asking me to take charge.  You always do it.”   
“I haven’t wanted it very often, but with….‘her’, I asked and she…..she laughed at me.  Called me a pussy.  Said a ‘real man’ wouldn’t need that.”   
Riley wanted to punch his ex-wife in the face.  “Bullshit.  I can do it whenever you need me to.  I may need to buy a book to learn how to do it really well…” Sean’s lips quirked up in a bit of a smile as he pictured Riley on the couch reading a book called ‘How To Be a Dominatrix’.  “But the thing is this: I love you, Seanie.  You ask very little of me.  This is nothing.  I can do this, and I will.  You just said it’s not very often, right?”   
“Right.”

“Okay then.”

 

They talked about it for awhile, and he told her how he had gone to a dominatrix a few times, but it didn’t work out well.  Dommes are not prostitutes, and he wanted it to end with sex, but they couldn’t, which he understood and respected.  Also, since he wanted sex as a reward, he wanted it to be with someone he had feelings for.  He never did it with girls he’d hooked up with at cons before he was with his wife, because he was afraid of being ridiculed, or even worse, having the girls blab.  There was a lot of trust involved.  He’d felt bad for sort of throwing Riley into it, but was grateful that she’d been able to do it.

 

This girl was a gift from heaven.

 

The next few weeks passed quickly, and Norman and Lisa were soon in town for his convention.  They stayed in the hotel during the con then came to spend the rest of the week in Sean and Riley’s house.  They had also started to refer to the house as “Sean and Riley’s place”, just like they called the Senoia home “our house” and the New York place “our penthouse”.  

When they pulled up, Riley came running out and jumped right into Norman’s arms and he picked her up and swung her around, while Sean and Lisa did the same.  “There’s my girl!” Norman said happily.  After he put her down, she ran over to Lisa and they hugged and jumped up and down squealing, then walked into the house chatting at full speed, not even giving the guys a backward glance.  Norman and Sean looked at each other and shrugged.  Then gave each other a bro hug and followed them inside.

 

The girls were at the kitchen table with sodas in front of them talking non-stop.  Lisa was filling Riley in on the latest Senoia and Walking Dead gossip, and Riley was filling her in on all the details of the book signing she had done and the new book she was writing.  The guys got beers and leaned against the kitchen counters watching them.  Norman asked Sean, “I wonder when they come up for air?”   
Both women turned and glared at him.  He got sheepish and said, “Sorry.”

 

They spent most of the week catching up.  The guys barbecued almost every night for dinner, and during the day, Riley took Lisa around to show her the same landmarks she’d taken photos at the first time she’d visited Sean: Mann’s Chinese Theater, where Lisa was thrilled to see her hand and footprints matched Carmen Miranda’s.  The Hollywood sign, where there was now a different guard who wouldn’t let them in.  She even drove with Lisa through Beverly Hills so she could see all of the fancy houses, and pointed out a few where movie stars supposedly lived.

“So how are you and Sean doing?” Lisa asked Riley.

“Really good.  I mean we’ve had a few arguments, just growing pains, really, but we always work it out.  I’m really happy with him and L.A.”   
“That’s obvious.  It’s written all over your face.”   
“What about you and Norman?  Things are good?”   
“Things are excellent.  Same as you and Sean, we’ve had a few lover’s quarrels, but we always work it out.  He still gets propositioned a lot, sometimes when I’m standing right there, and he always seems disgusted more than anything, but he’s always polite.  It’s unnerving when it happens, but on the other hand, I can’t blame them for trying.  I probably would!”

 

While they were out, the guys were back at the house hanging out, having almost the same conversation and cracking jokes back and forth.  Sean turned the convo serious, saying, “Reedus, if I show you something, can you keep it just between you and me?  You can’t tell Lisa, and you definitely can’t tell Riley.”   
Norman put down his beer and looked at Sean.  “Have you done something?  Brother, if you’ve done something to hurt Ri…..shit, did you cheat on her?”   
“What the fuck?  NO!  I would  NEVER do something like that!  Damn.  Way to show you trust me.  Didn’t I promise to never hurt her?”   
“I’m sorry, that’s the first place my mind went.  What do you need to show me?”   
  
Sean headed for their room with Norman following, and pulled the ring out of his nightstand, opening the box.  Norman looked at it and asked, “Is this what I think it is?”

Sean simply replied, “I’m gonna ask Riley to marry me.”


	89. Chapter 89

Norman’s eyes got big, and he exclaimed, “You are?  When?”   
Sean looked down at the ring and said, “I’m not sure.  Soon, maybe.  I want it to be special.  I hope she says yes.”   
Norman cocked his head at Sean.  “Of course she’ll say yes!  Why wouldn’t she?  She’s crazy about you!”   
Sean put the ring away.  “But she’s so skittish.  I’m afraid of scaring her off.”   
“Sean, she’s gone in the bathroom after you’ve used it.  If that didn’t scare her off, nothing will!”   
“Bite me, Reedus!  You don’t crap rose petals!”

 

Riley and Lisa were heading back to the house when Lisa said, “Can I ask you a question?”   
“Of course.”   
“Have you and Sean….talked about marriage at all?  I don’t mean to pry, but I was just curious.”   
Riley was quiet for a moment, then replied, “Well, we talked about it the night of your wedding.  He asked me if I’d ever thought about it, and naturally I have, off and on over the years.  But that was it, really.”   
Lisa noticed that although Riley said it in a very matter-of-fact tone, she seemed a bit sad.  She sympathetically said, “You want to marry him, don’t you?”   
Riley sighed.  “Only if he wants to marry me.  His last marriage ended so badly, he may be gun shy.  I don’t doubt that he loves me, not even for a second.  And I don’t doubt that he loves having me here.  But I think that may be as much of a commitment as he’s willing to make.  It’s actually a lot for a commitment-phobe like him.  I don’t need a ring or a piece of paper to prove he loves me.  He proves it every day.”  They were pulling into the driveway, and Riley said, “Please don’t say anything to him, okay?”   
“Of course not, sweetheart.”

 

The guys already had the grill going and were in their swimming trunks.  Riley and Lisa changed into their bathing suits and went outside.  After a few minutes of chit chat, Riley went in to get beers for everyone, and a Coke for Lisa, per her request.  While the guys waiting for the barbecue coals to get hot, they tried to impress the girls by doing flips off of the diving board.  Riley said, “Hey Lisa, let’s hot tub for a bit.  When they crack their skulls open, we’ll need to be as relaxed as possible.”  Lisa hesitated, but then followed Riley.  However, she only sat at the edge dangling her feet in.  “Why don’t you come all the way in?”   
“I can’t.”   
“What do you mean you can’t?  You said you couldn’t have a beer either….” Riley’s voice trailed off as she started to realize, and Lisa smiled at her.   
“Oh my god, Lisa,” she said quietly.  “Are you pregnant?”   
Lisa yelled out, “YES!”

The girls started screaming and Riley climbed out to hug her.

When Norman saw and heard that, he turned to Sean and said, “Oh, by the way, we’re gonna have a baby.”   
Sean’s head whipped around so fast Norman thought he might get whiplash.  “What?”

Riley and Lisa came running over, hand in hand.  She squealed to Sean, “They’re having a baby!”  Turning to Lisa, Riley said, “You should sit down and relax!” and dragged her over to a patio chair.

 

They all sat down and Norman said that apparently, he knocked her up on their wedding night.  “We’d been using protection ever since our first time together, but since we were married, we decided to throw caution to the wind.  We decided we were in this together forever and whatever was going to happen would happen.”

“But that was 3 months ago,” Sean said.  “Why didn’t you tell us sooner?”   
Lisa smiled and said, “Because I’m 36 years old.  Miscarriages happen, especially for ‘older’ women.  We wanted to be sure that nothing would happen.  After 3 months, the risk of miscarriage drops and continues to decrease as you get near the delivery date.  The doctor said he wasn’t worried as I was so healthy, but still.  We didn’t even tell Mingus at first.  He always wanted a little brother or sister, and we didn’t want him to get his hopes up.  So the family knows, including you, and when we go back to Senoia, he will let them know on set.”   
Norman took over the conversation then.  “I don’t want work to interfere with time between me and my baby.  I never let it happen with Mingus, and I won’t let it now.  If there’s an issue, I will tell them to kill me off.”   
Riley’s eyes got big.  “They’d never do that!  You’re their cash cow!”   
Norman smiled.  “Yep.  That’s what I’m betting on.  But even if they do, even if I never worked again, I’ve saved and invested my money.  We would live very comfortably for the rest of our lives.  Family is more important than some TV show.  I sure don’t want my kid to only know me from what he or she sees on TV.”

“But,” Lisa interjected, “this is the last flight I’m taking until after the baby is born.  The doctor had to go to great lengths to assure me that this trip would be okay.  But no more risks, even small ones, until later.  I’m going to be sticking to Senoia, where traffic is almost non-existent.  I can still be Norman’s personal assistant, I just won’t be able to travel with him.  But he’s been travelling solo for years.  We have the grandmother’s-to-be coming to visit two weeks after we get back.”

Sean and Riley were so happy for them.  Norman took Lisa’s hand, and told them, “But there’s another reason we wanted to come visit,” he looked down at Lisa and smiled.  “We wanted you to be the baby’s godparents.”

Sean and Riley looked at each other and smiled.  Riley said, “We’d be honored!”  Sean added, “Yes, definitely!”   
  
Norman and Lisa told them that when they thought of godparents, they had thought of them.  There was nobody else.  They knew that if anything happened to them, that Sean and Riley would raise that baby with so much love and care.  “You are the only ones we would truly trust,” Norman said.  “We love you guys, we know you’d be the best surrogate parents, if it ever came to that.”

 

Riley was almost in tears.  Norman knelt in front of her.  “You made me your next-of-kin, remember?”  Riley nodded and he continued.  “If you can trust me with your life, I can trust you with our child's life.”   
Riley threw her arms around him and hugged him tight.  “I hope that nothing ever happens to you guys, but god forbid if it does, I will love that baby like it was my own.  I’ll love it like my own anyway!”

 

They calmed down, had dinner and headed off to bed.  Norman wanted so badly to tell Lisa, but Sean made him promise.  Lisa knew something was up, but she didn’t know what.  “What is going on?”   
“I can’t tell you,” he said with honesty.

“Are you up to something?”

He got an idea.  He could give her hints and see if she could figure it out.  “Me? No…”

Lisa narrowed her eyes.  “Something’s up….”   
“But not with me…” he hinted.  She finally got it.

“With Riley?”   
“Not exactly….”   
“Sean?”   
“Well….sorta…”   
“Both of them?”   
“More or less….”   
She thought for a minute, then her eyes got big.  Norman said, “Shhhhh!”  Lisa whispered, “Is Sean going to ask her to marry him?”   
He nodded yes vigorously, but said, “I never said that.”

“What is he waiting for?”   
“The right time.  I’m guessing sometime after we leave.  You CANNOT say a word, Lis, for real.  Sean swore me to secrecy, I wasn’t supposed to even tell you.  So no hints, no games, no ‘I’ve got a secret’ or anything like that.”   
“Of course not.  She thought he’d never ask her because of his last marriage.”   
“He thinks she’ll never say yes because she’s been so skittish around him - not that I blame her.”

They would all just have to wait and see.

 

At the end of the week, Norman and Lisa headed back to Senoia, and Sean and Riley were alone again.  They spent their days working on their books and their nights fucking.  They were no less crazy about each other than the first night they had been together.  At least once a day, Sean thought of proposing to her.  But each time, it just wasn’t right.  It would be really unromantic to propose to her while she had a mouthful of toothpaste, or while she was frowning while trying to decipher her own handwriting.

 

Weeks, and then months passed.  Norman’s Twitter was going crazy as he kept posting pictures of Lisa’s growing belly.  He even called them at one point.  “I wanted to let you know before we told the world - she’s having a girl!  I’m gonna have little girl!  Can you believe it?”  He said Mingus spent a bunch of money from his job buying little baby dresses and pink toys.  “He’s as excited as we are!”  Even Helena was excited, and had sent Lisa some brand new designer maternity clothes with a note saying, “Beautiful new clothes for a beautiful new mother-to-be!”  So many people thought Helena was an ice queen, but she was actually a very nice woman.  Riley had met her several times when she would pick up or drop off Mingus, and she was always kind to her.  She even got Christmas and birthday cards and small gifts from her: a bottle of nice perfume, a book she wanted to read, that sort of thing.

 

Sean noticed that everyone was moving forward except for him.  Sure, he was still working in  movies and TV shows.  The HBJJ studio was doing well.  His book was coming along nicely.  He went to bed every night and woke up next to the one woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.  So why was he dragging his feet?


	90. Chapter 90

Norman called Sean 4 months after their visit, when Lisa was 7 months along.  Sean answered the phone in a panic.  “Is Lisa okay?”   
Norman laughed.  “You’re more nervous than I am!”   
“Well when you visited and she talked about how things could go wrong because of her age, I got a little stressed.  How can you leave her alone to go to cons?”   
“Because I don’t leave her alone.  My mom stays with her, or one of her friends.  One weekend, she even had Helena and Mingus here with her.”

“Wow.  Weird.”   
“Not really.”   
“Well if all is well, then what’s up?”   
“Why haven’t you proposed to Riley yet?  You said you were gonna do it after we left.”   
“Well….you just left!”

“We left FOUR MONTHS AGO.”

Norman and Lisa had compared notes on the flight home, and they were afraid that they might never get married, just because each was so worried about how the other would react.

Norman continued, “Just ask her.  She’ll say yes.”

“I will.  I just have to do it my own way and in my own time.  And I will.”

 

He meant it.  He would ask her.  Sooner or later.  Meanwhile, the little ring box was getting dusty in the back of his drawer.

 

Riley did a few more signings around L.A.  He would usually stop by during the day if he wasn’t busy to check on her and make sure she took a meal break and had a decent chair, and would pick her up afterward.  Picking her up usually involved him sitting around for at least an hour after the signing was supposed to be over, as Riley made sure to sign every book, take every selfie, give every hug, and listen to every story.  He loved that she was so attentive to her readers.  Until one night.

 

It was at the end of a signing.  Riley was getting ready to go, and Sean was waiting for her.  All of her readers had been taken care of, the bookstore itself was due to close in 30 minutes, and the employees were breaking down the tables.  A young guy came in saying, “Wait!  I drove all the way from Lancaster and there was a huge accident on Interstate 14, so I’m late!  I came to get my book signed!  Is it too late?”   
Sean took one look at the young guy and didn’t like him.  In his 20’s, handsome, golden brown hair, well dressed, perfectly tanned skin and pouty lips….if he’d stopped to think about it, he looked kind of like Sean when he was younger.  Sean felt a cocky air about this guy, and it made him...angry. 

In response to the young guy asking if it was too late, Sean shouted out, “YES!”  Riley shot him a dirty look and said, “No, it’s not too late!  I’d be happy to sign your book!”

She walked over to a far table that was still set up.  “What’s your name, dear?”   
“It’s David, Miss Maxwell.”   
She smiled at him and said, “Please, call me Riley.  Miss Maxwell sounds like some spinster school teacher!”

David smiled at her and said, “I wish they’d had teachers as pretty as you when I was in school.”  Sean rolled his eyes, and was irritated, more so when he heard Riley say, “Aw, that’s sweet!  Thank you!”

She signed his book and he read it out loud.  “‘To David, Better late (to the bookstore) than never!  Best wishes, Riley Maxwell.’ Thank you so much for signing this.”  He held out his hand to shake it, and she pulled him into a warm hug.  That was just how Riley was, sweet, polite, and affectionate, but Sean was fuming.  

David asked, “Would it be too much to ask for a selfie?”   
Sean was about to protest when Riley said, “Of course not!”  David took out his camera and put his arm around Riley, getting cheek to cheek with her.  He took the picture, but before going, looked around surreptitiously and took Riley’s hand, pulling her close to him.  They were practically nose to nose as this young stud spoke, and Riley seemed completely enraptured with what he was saying.  What the fuck was that kid doing so close to her?

When he had said his piece, Riley placed her hand gently on one cheek and kissed him on the other, smiling.  The boy blushed and smiled and Sean read his lips as he told Riley, “You are so  beautiful inside and out.”  He took Riley’s hand from his cheek, kissed it, and bowed.  “Goodbye, beautiful Riley.”   
She gave him a dazzling smile.  “Goodbye, David.  Maybe we’ll meet again.”

He gave her a silver screen grin and said, “You can count on that,” winked and left.

 

Sean was furious.  Who did that fucking kid think he was, hitting on Sean’s woman while he was standing right there?  He had half a mind to follow that little shit outside and beat him to a pulp.  Suddenly Riley was in front of him.  “Hi baby, ready to go?”  He didn’t answer her, just glared at her for a moment and walked away.  She came up behind him, having to break into a trot just to keep up with him. 

“Sean?  What’s wrong?” 

He didn’t answer, just kept walking to the car.  When he reached it, it was so ingrained in him that he opened the passenger side and held it open for Riley.  She climbed in and said, “Thank-”   He slammed the door before she could say another word.

Riley was so confused.  She didn’t understand what was happening.  It was clear that Sean was pissed about something.  Maybe because he had to wait so long?

He pulled out and was driving aggressively.  “Sean, could you please slow down?  You’re not on the race track, and you’re scaring me.”

He slowed down but didn’t look at her or even really acknowledge her otherwise.  “Baby,” she tried again, “are you mad at me because you had to wait?”   
Silence.

“Sean?”

Silence.

Riley wracked her brain.  He was fine until she signed that boy’s book.  “It has something to do with that last boy that came in, David, doesn’t it?”

“Ding ding ding!  Give the girl a prize!”

“Signing his book didn’t take that much longer, maybe five minutes.  Why are you so upset?”

“What the fuck was the little close up conversation about?  And him telling you you’re beautiful, who does he think he is, the little punk?!  And why the ever loving fuck did you kiss him?  What the hell was all that shit about, Riley?  Looking to trade me in for a younger model?  Huh?”

 

Riley sat there in stunned silence.  Finally she just said, “You’re jealous.”   
“I am NOT fucking jealous of that little prick!  I could kick his ass with one hand tied behind my back!”

“Sean…”   
“No, Ri.  That wasn’t fucking cool!”

“I’ve hugged and kissed people before, right in front of you.  And people have called me beautiful right in front of you.  Why is this guy a problem?”   
“Because he fucking is, Riley!”

“He is one reader!  One fan!  That’s all!  Why are we having this argument?  What is really going on here?”   
Sean took a breath and exploded.  “I don’t like seeing a younger version of me flirting with my wife, goddammit!  He can’t have you, okay?”

“Pull over.”   
“What?” 

“Pull over right now!”

Sean pulled into the far end of a grocery store parking lot and parked.  They both sat quietly for very different reasons.  Sean was still angry, Riley was in shock.  Finally she said quietly, “He pulled me close to talk to me because he grew up being molested by an uncle, and thinking he was bad and it was his fault.  He’s still dealing with it, and didn’t want to broadcast it.  He said my book helped him realize he wasn’t responsible for it.  Also, he’s gay.  He was not hitting on me.  He told me his boyfriend also loved the book.  And yes, he looked a bit like you from the Indiana Jones days.  But I like the version of Sean I have.  Older, and I’d say wiser except you are being a big, fat, stupid jackass right now, and I hope you are ashamed of yourself!”

Sean hung his head.  He felt like a jackass all right.

“And another thing,” Riley said.  “I’m your girlfriend.”   
Sean turned and looked at her confused. “I know that.”

“Obviously you don’t.  You called me your wife.”   
“What?”   
“Your exact words were ‘I don’t like seeing a younger version of me flirting with my wife, goddammit’.  I’m not your wife.”

Riley looked out the front windshield, not saying a word.  Sean looked at her profile.  She looked beautiful...and sad.   
“You’re right,” he told her softly.  “I was being jealous and petty.  Jesus, I can't believe I acted like that.”

 

He started the car and pulled out.  He turned around, driving away from the house.  Riley was confused.  “Where are we going?”

“You’ll see.”

Riley saw the street sign and asked, “We’re going up to Mulholland?”  She hadn’t been up there since the one time Sean took her.

He just nodded and was quiet the rest of the way.

They arrived, and Sean got out of the car, walked over to Riley’s side, and opened the door for her.  Still very confused, she stepped out, and Sean reached into the backseat for a windbreaker he had thrown back there the day before, helping Riley put it on as it was chilly up there.  They walked to the railing, and leaned on it, looking down at the city.

After what seemed like an eternity, Sean repeated what he had said.  “You’re right.  I was jealous and stupid.  And I am so, so sorry.   I think I remembered what a cocky little shit I’d been at his age and projected it on him.  That was not cool of me.” He ran his hands through his hair and turned to her.  “Please tell me you forgive me.”   
“Of course I do, Sean.  I love you.  You need to brush up on your communication skills though,” she smiled.

He smiled back.  “Duly noted.  And you were also right about you being my girlfriend and not my wife.”  He saw a hint of sadness in Riley’s eyes.  He continued, “But I’d like to change that.”

 

He pulled the ring box out of his pocket and opened it, then got down on one knee.  Riley’s heart caught in her throat.  Sean looked up at her like she was the only woman in the world, and to him, she was.   
  
“Riley Maxwell, will you marry me?”

 

Riley looked down at Sean on his knee, holding the open ring box.  She blinked a few times….still there.  It was a beautiful ring.  It was perfect for her.  She just stood there, her eyes flicking back and forth from Sean’s face to the ring.   
  
Sean looked up at her.  She wasn’t answering him.  “Riley?” he said softly.  Maybe she wasn’t ready.  Maybe she didn’t want to marry him.  She wasn’t saying no, but she sure as hell wasn’t saying yes, either.  She wasn’t saying anything.  Sean dropped his head.  He’d made a mistake in asking her.  His heart was breaking so badly, he was sure she could hear it.  He closed the ring box and stood, putting it back in his pocket.  “I’m sorry, Ri.  I thought...come on, let’s go home,” he said softly as he turned and walked back to the car.


	91. Chapter 91

Riley was glued to the spot.  She said to Sean’s retreating back, “Yes.”

“Well, come on then.”   
“No.”   
Sean turned and looked at her.  “I said let’s go home.  You said yes.”   
“That’s not what I said yes to.  My brain was...buffering the video.”

Sean walked over to her, with a suspicious look on his face.  “What are you saying yes to, Riley?”  He couldn’t handle it if this was a joke.  She gave him a gentle smile and said, “Please ask me again.”

Slowly, he took the box out again, got back down on one knee and said, “Riley, will you marry me?”

“Yes.  I will marry you.”

 

Sean’s face lit up like a kid at Christmas.  “You will?”   
“Of course I will!  Did you ever doubt?”

“Um...sorta….you were working on your second book already, and last time I brought it up at the penthouse, you’d said ‘book first, everything else later’.  I didn’t know if that still stood, and-”   
“Sean?”   
“What?”   
“Will you put the damn ring on my finger already?”

“Oh!  Yeah!  Of course!”   
  


He stood, taking the ring out of the little box and slid it on her finger.  It actually fit.  Riley looked down at it and back up at him.  “It fits me!  It’s so pretty!”

“Like it was made for you, baby.”

He told her about finding the ring at the store when he got her necklace fixed.  “But that was months ago!  Why did you wait so long?”   
“I don’t know.  Been carrying it around in my pocket for weeks.  I was waiting for the right time.”   
“And that was right after I called you out for being a jackass?”   
“No.  It was right after I referred to you as my wife.  For the second time.”   
He told her about how when he thought she was missing and was talking to Norman, he referred to her as his wife then, as well.  “I kept hesitating.  I knew I would ask you, but I wanted to do some big, romantic thing...like champagne and roses.  And I even fucked that up,” he said somewhat dejectedly.   
“You brought me up to Mulholland Drive, under the stars and looking down on the lights of the city, and you even got down on one knee….twice.  That’s pretty fucking romantic, Mr. Flanery.”   
“So I get an ‘A’ for effort?”   
“You get an ‘A’ for flawless execution.  This is seriously romantic.  I never would have thought you were driving up here to propose to me.  I wasn’t sure you would ever propose, actually.”

She told him how she thought he might be “gun shy” because his last marriage ended so badly.  Actually the whole thing was bad, from beginning to end.  And he’d tried so hard to make his ex happy.

“You ask for so little, Riley.  It takes so little to make you happy.  Sometimes I just want to give you the world, but I know damn well you wouldn’t take it all.”   
“Nah.  Maybe just a country or two,” she kidded.  “But I’ve gotten better at it.”

He smiled down at her.  “Yes, you have.”

“Sean, will you marry me?”   
“Didn’t I just ask you?”   
“Yes.  And now I’m asking you.  Sorry I don’t have a ring.”   
“Yes, Princess Riley, I will very happily marry you!”

 

Riley started dragging him back to the car, and he laughed.  “Anxious to get home?”   
“Nope, just back to the car,” she opened his door and slid the seat all the way back.  “It’s prom night.”

“Just one thing,” Sean said pulling out his phone.  He took a picture of the ring on her finger, captioned it, “She said yes!” and posted it to Twitter.  Before they even got in the car, his Twitter feed was exploding.

Once in the car, Riley immediately started blowing him.  His cell phone, still in his hand, rang.  He looked down at it.  “It’s Norman…”   
Riley stopped sucking his cock and said, “So answer it.”   
As soon as Sean said “hello”, Riley went back to blowing him.  Poor Sean was trying so hard to have a decent conversation.   
“Hey brother!....Yeah, she did…...We’re super excited (small moan)...no date yet, I just asked her now…(another small moan)....what? No, I’m fine….what?....oh fuck, Ri, he wants to talk to you.”  

Riley pulled her mouth off of Sean but used her hand to stroke him.  “Hi Norm!...nope, no idea, it was a total surprise….no he’s not sick….moaning?  Yeah he was…..because we are in the car on Mulholland all alone….think about it...yes, I was until you decided you wanted to talk to me, I was taught to never talk with my mouth full!...fuck you with your ‘ew’!...we’ll call you tomorrow, ok?...yeah, I need to finish sucking his dick before he gets blue balls...love you, too, bye!”

She hung up and looked at Sean.  “He said to tell you bye,” and then her lips were wrapped around him again.

“Gonna cum in your mouth angel.”   
“Mmhmm.”

 

He unloaded in her delicious mouth grunting out, “I LOVE YOU!  Fucking love you...fucking love you...sweet Ri…”

She licked up every last drop, then sat up on her knees.  His head was back against the headrest, eyes closed, and he was panting.  She kissed him softly on the cheek and said, “I fucking love you, too, Sean.  Forever.”   
He pulled her across his lap into his arms.  “Forever.  For real.  For keeps.  You and me.”

 

They sat there for the longest time, Riley on Sean’s lap, looking at the lights of Hollywood.  Sean spoke quietly, “Are you happy, babygirl?”

She turned to face him with a smile.  “I am very happy.  A little overwhelmed, but happy.” 

He looked at her with concern etched on his face.  “Why overwhelmed?”   
“I have to plan a wedding and write a book.”

“No, angel.  WE have to plan a wedding and both write books.  I want to be involved with this.  Please.”  He was almost pleading, and it was heartbreaking.

“Of course!  I’m sorry, I wasn’t trying to exclude you.  But we’re going to have a problem right off.”

“Why?”   
“I don’t have any family, Sean.  I don’t have my dad to walk me down the aisle.  I want Norman to do it, but I know you’ll want him for a best man.”   
“So he can walk you down the aisle and then stand next to me.”   
Riley smiled.  “Really?  That means you’ll have to stand up there alone.”   
“I know it means a lot to you.  Besides, once we’re married, I’d like to think I’ll never have to stand alone again.”

“You won’t.”

 

Another car pulled up, so they decided to go home and fuck in private.  On the way, Sean asked, “Do you still want to get married on the beach?  Because I really liked that idea.”   
“Really?”   
“Definitely.”

 

They spent the night violating each other, so much so, they needed to change the sheets in the morning.

And then they started planning: guest list, location for wedding and reception, cake, food, flowers, etc.  And Sean loved every minute of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more chapter to go!


	92. Chapter 92

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINAL CHAPTER!

SIX MONTHS LATER

Riley was sequestered in a small tent at the end of the beach with Lisa. “My god, Lisa, I’m shaking!” Riley exclaimed, holding out her trembling hands.  
“Darling, it’s all going to be fine! I was nervous too, remember? Everything is going on schedule.”  
“What about the reception? The caterers? The DJ?”  
“Everything is fine! The cake and cupcakes are there, the people from Mama Julietta’s are setting up for the buffet, and the DJ is there getting set up as well. It’s all taken care of. And before you ask, your reservation for the resort in Jamaica has been confirmed, as have your first class plane tickets.”

Ghia had given Riley and Sean the best present ever that morning: Riley’s Sunflowers book was number two on the New York Times bestseller list. The buzz about her second book, a collection of essays due out in a month titled “Out Of the Blue”, was very good. Her life had fallen into place.   
Riley had never been more nervous in her entire life. She and Sean had planned every detail of the wedding together. They had a sunflower motif, and the colors were white (of course), yellow (for the sunflowers), and cobalt blue (because Sean liked the way it looked against the white and yellow). Lisa was sitting with her in her beautiful cobalt blue dress, while Riley shook like a leaf in her white one. True to her nature, she had bought her wedding dress off the rack. It was from Bloomingdale’s, but it was in the clearance rack. She actually spent more on Lisa’s dress than her own. The archway that they were to be married under was wrapped in white and blue, and in her shaking hands, Riley held a bouquet of sunflowers and white roses, wrapped with cobalt blue ribbon.  
They heard Norman outside say, “Knock knock, can I come in?”  
Lisa asked, “Is Sean with you?”  
“No, of course not!”  
“Then yes, you can come in.”  
He came in, looking handsome in his dark suit and cobalt tie, and smiled at Riley. “Hey Riley-girl. Five minutes to go. Mingus wanted me to tell you that it’s not too late to marry him.”  
Riley chuckled. “I”m so nervous, I’m shaking.”  
“Are you having second thoughts?” he asked, concerned.  
“Yes and no. I know I’m doing the right thing, I love him so much. But this is such a big step.”  
Norman took her shaking hands in his. “This changes nothing, sweetheart. It’s just a ring and a piece of paper. You guys have just invited all of us bums along for the ride.”

Mingus came to the tent. “Riley? It’s time.”  
“Thank you dear. And if I was 20 years younger, I would totally marry you,” she said, giving him a kiss on the cheek as he blushed.

The music started. Riley didn’t like the wedding march, so she would walk down the aisle to “Ave Maria”. Before Lisa walked out, Riley asked, “You have his ring, Lisa?”  
“Yes dear, and Norman has yours, and the reception is ready for us. Let’s get you married!”

Norman watched through the tent flap as Lisa walked down the aisle. Her cousin Lauren was in the front row holding baby Zoe Isabella Reedus. The baby was in her Sunday best dress and barefoot, with her little baby toenails painted pink. She squealed happily upon seeing her mommy, and everybody chuckled. Riley took a deep breath, and Norman said, “Are you ready?”  
“Yes. I don’t know why I’m so nervous, but I am.”  
“Let’s go, he’s waiting for you.”

They stepped out of the tent. Norman with the pant legs of his suit rolled up, and both of them barefoot. The guests were as well, with their shoes tucked under their seats. They had warned on the invitation that this was a wedding on the beach, in the sand, and the wedding party would be barefoot, so they were well prepared.

Riley looked up the aisle at Sean, as he looked at her, then they both broke into huge smiles, and her nervousness was gone.   
The guest list was family and close friends: Sean’s mom, the Reedus family including Helena, and the cast members of The Walking Dead who were able to make it. The beach was on private property, and far from prying eyes. The only photographers they wanted taking pictures were the ones they hired, which were snapping pics unobtrusively on both sides.

When they finally got to the front, Norman turned to face Riley. He had tears in his eyes as he told her, “Lisa and I both love you so very much. We are always here for you, but I don’t think you'll need our help anymore. This is the right decision, Riley. This is a good thing. I love you so much, and I am so proud of you.” Motioning to Sean, he added, “Make you you keep this joker in line.” He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. As he turned to Sean, he said, “I’d tell you to take good care of her, but you already do.”

Sean stepped forward, and took her hands in his. “Hi there, pretty girl.”

 

END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all folks! I felt that their relationship had come full circle, and they were both getting the "happy ending" they both wanted and deserved. I decided to end it with Sean saying the first thing he'd said to her back in chapter 1.
> 
> I do hope you will check out some of my other fics I have, and starting tomorrow, I will be uploading one chapter a day of my Daryl Dixon/Walking Dead fic "An Angel In the Woods".


End file.
